Newspaper Loyalty

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News pap e r l o

yalty W Leon de Wolff

SUBSRIBERSHY S News

TA PAPER Y O

R L LOYALTY E

AV Why subscribers E L

EO STAY OR LEAVE WO N DE L FF

Newspaper-def.indd 1 02-05-12 19:50

Newspaper Loyalty

Why subscribers stay or leave

Leon de Wolff This study is sponsored by: Het Stimuleringsfonds voor de Pers

Cover Design: Bruno Heemskerk

Layout and Printing: Optima Grafische Communicatie, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, without written permission of the author or, when appropriate, for the publishers of the publications. Newspaper Loyalty Why subscribers stay or leave

Trouw aan een krant Waarom abonnees blijven of opzeggen

Proefschrift

ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam op gezag van de rector magnificus

Prof. dr. H.G. Schmidt en volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties. De openbare verdediging zal plaatsvinden op

dinsdag 19 juni 2012 om 15.30 uur

Leonardus John de Wolff geboren te Rotterdam

Promotiecommissie

Promotor: Prof. dr. H. J. G. Beunders

Overige leden: Prof. dr. J. A. Baggerman Prof. dr. M. J. van den Hoven Prof. dr. A. Klamer In memory of Lex Towbin Contents

Samenvatting 13 I Aanleiding 13 I.I Het ontbreken van empirisch onderzoek over kranten 13 I.II Het publieke debat 13 I.III Paradoxale positie 14 I.IV Individualisering 14 I.V Politiek gezicht 14 I.VI Conclusies 15 I.VII Internet als alternatief 17 II The weakness of will 18 III Soorten lezers 19 Chapter 1 Introduction 21 1.0 Introduction 23 1.0.1 Overview 25 1.1 Explanations 33 1.1.1 Dereading 33 1.1.2 The changing media landscape 33 1.1.3 Individualization 36 1.1.4 Free newspaper 36 1.1.5 Internet 36 1.1.6 Diminishing free time 37 1.1.7 Depillarization 37 1.2 Scrutinizing the usual answers 38 1.3 The definition of the problem 41 1.4 Conceptual and theoretical issues 41 1.4.1 The heterogeneity of the audience 43 1.5 The pragmatic concept of function 43 1.6 The holistic concept of brand 46 1.6.1 Description 47 1.6.2 Newspaper subscribers 48 1.7 Research design 49 1.7.1 The theoretical section 49 1.7.2 Demand 50 1.7.3 Perceived supply 51 1.7.4 Purchase and loyalty 51 1.7.5 The empirical section 52 Section I: The theoretical section 55 Chapter 2 Basic assumptions 59 2.0 Introduction 61 2.1 Objective subjectivity 62 2.2 Social construction theory 63 2.3 Non rational models 68 2.4 Pragmatism 71 Chapter 3 Theoretical issues 75 3.0 Introduction 76 3.1 The meaning of the word ‘newspaper’ 78 3.2 The need for a newspaper. 80 3.2.1 Fuzzy need 83 3.2.2 Weakness of will 88 3.3 The taxonomy of newspaper content 90 3.4 Individual differences 91 3.5 Newspaper layout 93 3.6 Rationalism in media theory 96 3.6.1 Newspaper loyalty 100 3.7 The rational model 100 3.7.1 The function of a newspaper 101 3.8 The affective model 102 3.8.1 Brand 103 3.8.2 Newspaper habit and tradition 107 3.9 Conative model 108 3.9.1 Medium preferences 109 3.9.2 Price 109 3.9.3 Free papers 109 3.9.4 Delivery 110 3.9.5 Time 110 3.9.6 Overwhelming media supply 110 Chapter 4 The concept of function 113 4.0 Introduction 117 4.1 Lasswell 120 4.2 Berelson 121 4.3 Wright 122 4.4 Martin & Copeland 123 4.5 Burgoon & Burgoon 124 4.6 Willey 126 4.7 Lentz & Pander Maat 126 4.8 Pragmatic and academic functions 129 4.9 John Searle and Emile Durkheim 132 4.9.1 John Searle 132 4.10 Institutionalization 133 4.10.1 Words 136 4.11 Emile Durkheim 137 4.12 The process of defining function 140 4.13 The functions of objects 140 4.14 The functions of an object 145 4.15 The designer 146 4.16 Screwdriver philosophy 147 4.17 Defining the concept of function: first attempt 151 4.18 The function of an act 153 4.19 The function of a phenomenon or institution 153 4.20 The function for whom or for what 154 4.21 Primary and secondary functions 155 4.22 System functions 158 4.23 Functional prerequisites 159 4.24 The definition of function 163 Chapter 5 A taxonomy of newspaper content 167 5.0 Introduction 169 5.1 A taxonomy for newspaper content 170 5.1.1 The Utrecht approach of text functions 171 5.2 Specific functions 176 5.2.1 The Bare Facts 179 5.2.2 Overview 182 5.2.3 Elucidation. 183 5.2.4 Opinion 184 5.2.5 Advice 184 5.2.6 Emotion 185 5.2.7 Entertainment 186 5.3 Perspectives 188 5.3.1 Practical and general perspective 190 5.3.2 Human, social and institutional perspective 190 5.3.2.1 The human perspective 191 5.3.2.2 The social perspective 193 5.3.2.3 The institutional perspective 194 5.3.3 More perspectives 196 5.4 Areas of interest 197 5.5 The matrix 198 Section II The empirical section 201 Chapter 6 Empirical set-up 203 6.0 Introduction 205 6.1 Research set-up and hypotheses 206 6.1.1 The rational variables 209 6.2 The affective variables 216 6.2.1 Brand score 217 6.2.2 Habit & tradition 217 6.3 The conative variables 220 6.4 The perception of supply 224 Chapter 7 Empirical data 227 7.0 Introduction 229 7.1 Functions 232 7.1.1 Preference for areas of interest, specific functions, perspectives 232 7.1.2 Readers of different type of newspapers 235 7.1.3 Readers of particular national titles 237 7.1.4 Subscribers and readers with no subscription 240 7.1.5 Readers with different ages and gender 242 7.1.6 Readers with similar dominant preferences 246 7.1.7 Aversion to certain areas of interest 251 7.1.7.1 Age and gender of readers with aversion 254 7.1.8 Secondary functions 256 7.1.9 Match or mismatch 258 7.1.9.1 The supply of areas of interest 264 7.1.9.2 The supply of specific functions 269 7.1.9.3 The supply of perspectives 271 7.1.9.4 The size of text and images 274 7.1.9.5 Personified and composed article 276 7.1.10 The front page 277 7.1.11 Layout and the perception of supply 287 7.1.12 Aspiration and Behavior 291 7.2 Brand, habit and tradition 296 7.2.1 Brand score 297 7.2.2 Habitscore 300 7.2.3 Tradition 305 7.3 Circumstantial factors 306 7.3.1 Price 307 7.3.2 Free papers 310 7.3.3 Delivery 313 7.3.4 Time spent reading 313 7.3.5 Overwhelming news supply 320 7.3.6 Preferences of medium 323 Chapter 8 Testing the hypotheses 331 8.0 Introduction 332 8.1 Best kind of model 333 8.1.1 Cognitive variables 334 8.1.2 Affective variables 335 8.1.3 Conative variables 336 8.1.4 Probability of disloyalty 336 8.2 All variables of the comprehensive model 338 8.2.1 Function 339 8.2.2 Brand 340 8.2.3 Habit & tradition 340 8.2.4 Free papers, medium preference, time spent reading, overwhelming 341 media supply 8.2.5 Quality papers and popular papers 341 8.3 Characteristics of people 345 8.3.1 Aspiration and behavior 346 8.3.2 Layout and the perception of supply 348 8.3.3 Political mismatch 350 Chapter 9 Conclusions 351 9.0 Introduction 352 9.1 Internet, steady, but slower 353 9.2 Content brand and newspaper loyalty 354 9.3 The weakness of will 355 9.4 Subordination of the rational model 356 9.5 Search, experience and credence attributes 356 Epilogue 359 Dankwoord 360 Appendix 362 Appendix 1 Questionnaire 363 Appendix 2 Questionnaire set up 387 Bibliography 390 Endnotes 397 Curriculum Vitae 409 Newspaper Loyalty

ambivalent picture: decline but substantial market penetration of newspapers

why d o some newspaper subscribers public discourse: renew their subscription even if they hardly empirical do not get the kind of articles focus on decline and pictures they want and three causes often others do not ? mentioned

free content internet papers basic theoretical assumptions issues

no monopoly the construction affective variables of social reality brand on rationality need tradition habit objective pragmatism subjectivity cognitive variables the weakness functions of will conceptual model conative variables price free papers lay‐out delivery time taxonomy medium preference function of newspaper content

surveys newspaper loyalty( n=4.155) (n= 1.660) (n= 2.500)

description results

analys es res ults

content has impact of impact of no direct free papers internet all 14 impact on is less than is less than variables newspaper assumed assumed in the model loyalty delivery and have an odds price has brand have ratio. a modest the highest 6 were impact on impact on sigificant. newspaper content has newspaper loyalty no direct loyallty impact on newspaper loyalty of quality paper subscribers

12 Samenvatting Samenvatting

Deze studie is een empirisch onderzoek naar de vraag waarom een deel van de krantenabonnees in Nederland er wel eens over heeft gedacht zijn abonnement op te zeggen en waarom een ander deel dit niet heeft gedacht en ook niet van plan is te gaan doen. Zij blijven trouw aan hun krant. Zelfs als de krant volgens de lezers niet de ideale mix bevat van soorten artikelen en foto’s. Deze studie is ook een onderzoek naar theoretische problemen die zich voordoen bij het beantwoorden van de eerste vraag.

I Aanleiding

Er zijn ten minste vijf aanleidingen geweest om tot een empirisch onderzoek te besluiten.

I.I Het ontbreken van empirisch onderzoek over kranten

Al jaren lang doet het Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau empirisch onderzoek naar de tijdsbesteding van de inwoners van Nederland. Tijds- besteding van media is daarvan een onderdeel, zodat we over een lange periode weten hoeveel tijd mensen besteden aan het lezen van de krant en hoeveel aan andere media, zoals radio, televisie en internet. Over de vraag waarom abonnees hun abonnement verlengen of beëindigen is ons geen onderzoek bekend. Ook niet als we de onderzoeksvraag verbreden. En zelfs is er vrijwel geen empirisch onderzoek over de krant als zodanig naast de studies van het Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau naar leesduur.

I.II Het publieke debat

In het publieke debat over de krant speelt de paradoxale positie van het dagblad geen rol. Er is wel aandacht voor de (relatieve) daling van de betaalde oplage, maar niet voor de aanzienlijke marktpenetratie. In 2011 had 52% van de huishoudens in Nederland een betaalde krant.

13 Newspaper Loyalty

De centrale vraag zou daarom niet alleen moeten luiden waarom abonnees hun abonnement opzeggen, maar ook waarom abonnees hun abonnement verlengen, zelfs als ze niet de mix krijgen die ze willen.

I.III Paradoxale positie

De ogenschijnlijke tegenstrijdigheid die zo kenmerkend is voor de positie van de krant wordt vervangen door een simpel, eenduidig beeld, dat niet is gebaseerd op empirisch onderzoek. Volgens de gangbare mening verdwijnt de krant, omdat internet en de gratis kranten hetzelfde nieuws sneller en gratis bezorgen. Vooral jongeren krijgen in de gaten dat internet hen net zo goed van nieuws kan voorzien, misschien nog wel beter. Is dat zo, behoren jongeren tot de groep enthousiaste protagonisten van internet?

I.IV Individualisering

De veel gehoorde mening dat de individualisering ervoor heeft gezorgd dat mensen niet meer zijn geïnteresseerd in wat er in de samenleving gebeurt, leidt tot een daling van de verkoop als de krant zich niet aan- past aan de veranderende omstandigheid, tenminste als de onderlig- gende assumptie juist is en er een positief verband bestaat tussen de inhoud van de krant en het aanbod. Is dat zo?

14 Samenvatting

I.V Politiek gezicht

Volgens sommigen is de keuze van een krant heel simpel: linkse mensen kopen een linkse krant, rechtse mensen een rechtse. Ook deze mening heeft geen actuele empirische basis. Het meest recente onderzoek is de veertig jaar oude studie van Van Cuilenburg. Hij constateerde op basis van gedegen empirisch onderzoek dat de politieke opstelling van De Tijd hooguit 6% van het abonneeverlies bepaalt. Dat bevestigt de gangbare mening dus niet. Wij willen weten of er veertig jaar later wel of geen direct verband bestaat tussen politieke voorkeur en loyaliteit met een krant, of dat er helemaal geen verband is.

I.VI Conclusies

De belangrijkste conclusie van dit onderzoek is dat het opzeggen of verlengen van een krantenabonneement niet rationeel gebeurt, de loyaliteit met een krant is geen rationele zaak. Er zijn abonnees die hun abonnement behouden ondanks het feit dat ze niet krijgen wat ze willen. Uit een survey onder de inwoners van Nederland (n = 4.155) blijkt dat 76% van de lezers niet de soorten artikelen en foto’s denkt te krijgen die ze graag wil hebben. Het gepercipieerde aanbod sluit niet aan bij de vraag.* Er zijn nauwelijks verschillen tussen de lezers van bepaalde soorten kranten en tussen krantentitels. Het percentage mismatch van nationale, locale en gratis kranten ligt rond de 78 en het grootste verschil tussen twee titels is zeven procentpunten: Metro: 80% en het AD: 73%. Je zou verwachten dat een mismatch van die omvang tot een massale uittocht zou leiden. Dat blijkt niet zo te zijn. Er is wel een daling, maar die is per jaar maar klein.** De respondenten werd gevraagd naar hun redactionele voorkeur. Deze vraag kon worden gesteld, omdat wij een taxonomie hebben ontworpen die een begrippenkader bevat waarmee de inhoud van een

* De vraag moet worden vergeleken met het gepercipieerde aanbod, omdat de lezer zijn gedrag laat bepalen door wat hij denkt aan te treffen en niet door het werkelijke aanbod. ** Overigens heeft een kleine jaarlijkse teruggang over een langere periode wel drastische consequenties. Een jaarlijkse daling van 1% betekent een halvering na 23 jaar.

15 Newspaper Loyalty krant kan worden beschreven. (Hoofdstuk 5) Dit begrippenkader kon worden ontworpen dankzij de uitgebreide reflectie over het begrip functie. (Hoofdstuk 4). Zonder zich ervan bewust te zijn, gebruiken mensen het concept ‘functie’ om hun begrip van de wereld te construeren; de functie van een product of voorwerp geeft de resultaten weer die het product of het voorwerp teweegbrengt of waarmee iets kan worden teweeggebracht. De functie van een artikel of een foto kan pas zijn vervuld als een lezer het artikel heeft gelezen of de foto heeft bekeken en als het artikel aan de noodzakelijke voorwaarden voldoet om de gewenste functie te ver- vullen. Stel dat de maker van het artikel, de journalist, de ontwerper* een artikel wil schrijven waarin hij uitlegt waarom Feyenoord de laatste wedstrijd heeft gewonnen. Het artikel moet dan in ieder geval het argument of de argumenten bevatten waarom dat zo is. Als de lezer het artikel heeft gelezen en hij weet waarom Feyenoord de laatste wedstrijd heeft gewonnen dan heeft het artikel een inzichtsfunctie vervuld: het heeft de lezer in staat gesteld een resultaat te bereiken dat hij bereiken wil: begrijpen waarom Feyenoord de laatste wedstrijd heeft gewonnen. De lezer wil niet alleen maar artikelen lezen over het interessegebied sport (misschien ook wel, dat zal blijken) hij wil niet alleen maar artikelen lezen over het waarom (misschien ook wel, dat zal blijken) en hij wil evenmin alleen artikelen lezen die zijn geschreven vanuit één perspectief (misschien ook wel, dat zal blijken). Daarom hebben wij de respondent gevraagd aan te geven hoeveel hij wil lezen van elk van de negentien algemene interessegebieden, de drie geografische interessegebieden, de zeven specifieke functies en de in totaal vijf perspectieven.** Er blijkt geen interessegebied te zijn dat er echt uitspringt. Dat geldt zowel voor alle krantenlezers samen als voor de lezers van afzonderlijke titels. ‘Rampen ongelukken en calamiteiten’ scoren het hoogst (9%) ‘kunst en cultuur’, ‘geestelijke leven’ en ‘beroemdheden’ het laagst (3%).

* Af en toe wordt de journalist aangeduid als de ontwerper. Wij doen dat omdat hij degene is die uiteindelijk bepaalt hoe hij het artikel schrijft; bij de opzet van het artikel is de journalist degene die de specificaties van het artikel vaststelt, de journalist ontwerpt het artikel. Wat geldt voor de journalist die schrijft, geldt ook voor een journalist die foto’s maakt. ** Het woord functie wordt hier op verschillende manieren gebruikt, als aandui- ding van het geheel - de primaire en secundaire functie - en als onderdeel van de primaire functie: de specifieke functie.

16 Samenvatting

De heersende mening dat buitenlands nieuws minder populair is dan regionaal nieuws wordt bevestigd. Regionaal nieuws scoort hoger dan binnenlands nieuws en veel hoger dan buitenlands nieuws. (40-35-25) De populariteit van bepaalde specifieke functies lag minder voor de hand; zo scoren inzicht en overzicht hoger dan emotie, advies en ver- maak (17-18 tegen 15-14 en 13) . Het praktische perspectief scoort hoger dan het algemene perspectief (57-43). Het institutionele perspectief scoort lager dan het mensgerichte en het sociale perspectief (26-37-37). Er zijn wel verschillen tussen leeftijdsgroepen, mannen en vrouwen, regionale kranten, landelijke kranten en gratis kranten, maar het zijn eerder verschilletjes dan scheidslijnen.

Tussen de afhankelijke variabele ‘loyaliteit met een krant’- gedefi- nieerd als “er zelfs niet aan denken een abonnement op de krant te beëindigen” en de factoren die de loyaliteit met een krant kunnen ver- oorzaken, is een regressie analyse uitgevoerd. Deze analyse wijst uit dat de kans dat een abonnee opzegt met 15,1% toeneemt als de gepercipieerde inhoud niet voldoet aan de wens. Als de krant slecht wordt bezorgd neemt de kans dat hij opzegt toe met 50,2%. De invloed van bezorging is dus meer dan drie keer zo groot als de invloed van de inhoud. Omdat de geringe invloed van inhoud op loyaliteit zoveel afwijkt van wat in brede kring wordt gedacht is deze regressie nogmaals uitgevoerd voor de abonnees die algemeen worden gezien als lezers van kwaliteits- kranten, zoals NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant, Trouw en nrc.next. Je mag van deze categorie personen verwachten dat de inhoud van de krant een bepalende factor is bij het verlengen of opzeggen van een abonnement. Het onderzoek wijst echter uit dat onder de abonnees van kwaliteits- kranten de invloed van inhoud op loyaliteit kleiner is dan bij de volledige populatie. Dat geldt ook voor de drie andere opvattingen die in het publieke debat vaak zijn te beluisteren als oorzaak voor de krantendaling: het internet, een medium dat vooral bij jongeren zeer populair is, de gratis kranten en het verschil tussen wat men wil van de krant en wat men krijgt van de krant, meestal verstopt in een ogenschijnlijk ander argument, zoals individualisering. Het onderzoek dat wij uitvoerden spreekt deze verklaringen tegen.

17 Newspaper Loyalty

I.VII Internet als alternatief

Er is, zoals we eerder opmerkten, de veronderstelling dat internet op zijn minst een goed alternatief is voor een papieren krant. We hebben deze houding gemeten door de respondenten te vragen of ze het helemaal eens zijn, eens zijn, geen mening hebben, mee oneens zijn of helemaal mee oneens zijn met een schaal bestaande uit vier stellingen die internet als beter, maar in ieder geval gelijkwaardig alternatief tot uitdrukking brengen. Als internet inderdaad wordt gezien als een goed alternatief voor een papieren krant is het te verwachten dat een behoorlijk percentage van de respondenten hoog zal scoren. Het is bovendien te verwachten dat de score van jongeren (13-25) nog hoger zal uitvallen. De groep die het er helemaal mee eens is dat internet de plaats kan innemen van de krant is slechts 11% van de Nederlandse bevolking. Anders gezegd 89% van de mensen in Nederland ziet een nieuwssite niet als alternatief voor een papieren krant. De verwachting is dat onder jongeren (13-25 jaar) het aantal internet- sceptici veel lager is. Het onderzoek laat het tegendeel zien. Slechts 9% van de jongste leeftijdscategorie is het er helemaal mee eens dat internet de plaats kan innemen van de krant. De groep jeugdigen is relatief gezien bijna even groot als een groep ouderen: 7% van de 50 tot 65 jarigen en 6% van de 65-plussers. Voor alle leeftijdsgroepen op één na (25-35 jaar) geldt dat de groep die het “helemaal eens” is met pro-internet stellingen kleiner is dan de groep aanhangers van de papieren krant.

II The weakness of will

Als reactie op lezersonderzoek hoor je vaak dat respondenten niet zeggen wat zij lezen, maar wat ze behoren te lezen. Ze zijn van mening dat zij het artikel waarin wordt uitgelegd waarom de Nederlandse soldaten in Afghanistan politie-instructeurs worden genoemd als eerste behoren te lezen, maar als puntje bij paaltje komt lezen ze toch eerst de vrolijke column; de lezer doet niet wat hij zichzelf heeft voorgenomen om te doen. Dit verschijnsel komt vaak voor en niet alleen bij het lezen van een krant. Het staat bekend als the weakness of will. Het is daarom redelijk te veronderstellen dat respondenten de vragen over het soort

18 Samenvatting artikelen dat zij willen lezen beantwoorden alsof het vragen zijn over het soort artikelen dat zij behoren te lezen. Het is lastig om respondenten hierover een directe vraag te stellen. In feite vraag je respondenten dan toe te geven dat ze bij vorige vragen hebben gelogen. Niettemin hebben we het toch geprobeerd. Eerst schetsten we een situatie: “Het kan wel eens voorkomen dat je iets wil doen wat je echt belangrijk vindt, maar toch niet doet. Zo kan het ook gaan met het lezen van een krant. Je begint niet altijd het artikel te lezen dat je voor je gevoel als eerste zou moeten lezen”. Vervolgens hebben we de respondenten drie antwoordmogelijkheden voorgehouden. 1. Dat gevoel ken ik zeker, 2. dat gevoel ken ik wel, en 3. dat gevoel ken ik niet. Meer dan twee derde van de respondenten (68%) zegt dat gevoel wel of zeker te kennen. Aan deze groep respondenten is vervolgens gevraagd om achtereenvolgens interessegebieden, specifieke functies en perspectieven te verdelen. Dat levert een lijstje op met wat je als eerste zou moeten lezen en een lijstje met wat je eigenlijk als eerste leest. Er zijn grote verschillen bij de interessegebieden politiek, criminaliteit, economie, sport, wetenschap en geestelijk leven. Behalve over criminaliteit worden artikelen met de genoemde interessegebieden veel minder vaak als eerste gelezen, dan eigenlijk zou moeten, gezien de antwoorden op de vraag wat ik wil en wat ik eigenlijk doe. Bij criminaliteit is het tegenovergestelde het geval. Dit interessegebied wordt in werkelijkheid veel meer als eerste gelezen dan je op grond van de relatieve voorkeur van deze respondent zou mogen verwachten.

III Soorten lezers

Analyse van het survey materiaal maakt duidelijk dat er vijf soorten lezers zijn als we letten op hun voorkeuren voor interessegebieden, specifieke functies en preferenties. Er blijken vier clusters te zijn met een overeenkomstig pakket aan dominante preferenties en één cluster dat bestaat uit mensen zonder dominante voorkeuren. We hebben de clusters namen gegeven die de essentie van elk afzonderlijk cluster typeert. We onderscheiden: 1 De machtsgerichte lezers Dit type lezer is vooral geïnteresseerd in politiek en economie, wil graag de specifieke functies kale feiten en inzicht en het institutionele perspectief.

19 Newspaper Loyalty

2. De inhoudsgerichte lezers Dit type lezer richt zich niet op het proces, maar op de inhoud. Dit type lezer is vooral geïnteresseerd in kunst en cultuur, samenleving en wetenschap. Ook zij lezen graag artikelen met de specifieke functies overzicht en inzicht en met een sociaal perspectief. 3. De lezers die gericht zijn op de kwaliteit van het leven Deze lezers kijken niet zozeer naar de wereld maar naar hun wereld. Zij hebben geen specifieke voorkeur voor een interessegebied, maar welke het ook is het wordt pas interessant bij een praktisch perspectief, de lezer moet er zijn handelen op kunnen baseren. 4. De sensatiegerichte lezers Deze groep lezers heeft een dominante behoefte aan artikelen en foto’s over de interessegebieden misdaad, calamiteiten, entertainment en beroemdheden en het mensgerichte perspectief. 5. De lezers die geen voorkeuren hebben Deze groep lezers heeft geen dominante voorkeuren.

20 Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 1

Immediate caus e of this s tudy: Immediate caus e 1.the ambivalent pos ition Ambivalent pos ition public debate of news papers . decline over a longer period 1. the decline of paid 2.the lack of empirical 1975: 92%; 2010: news paper circulation data about news papers 52% market penetration (no attention to 3. the s tatus of market penetration of 52%) the public dis cours e

S ubs ident to C onfirmed by Lack of empirical us ed theory data about news papers empirical s tudies in the las t four decades

- dereading - depolitization - the change of - eros ion of civic media lands cape engagement - individualization - diminis hing free time Yet various - free news papers - over-whelming media explanations - Internet production in public dis cours e - depillaris ation - vanishing political clas s ification

To give the arguments an empirical To ans wer this ques tion In order to meas ure preferences bas is we cons tructed a model that we needed a taxonomy that could we have tells us how much each variable be us ed to des cribe the content to ans wer to contributes to the explanation of of a news paper. the following newpaper loyalty This taxonomy mus t be bas ed on the ques tion concept of pragmatic function

To prevent the exclus ion of a particular kind of variables we s aw to it Why renew s ome A pragmatic function enables s ubs cribe r s that variables of all three kinds of the triad cognitive, agents to accomplis h the their s ubs cription res ults they expect to and others do not? affective and conative were entered. accomplis h. Next to that is the academic function of thos e obs erved cons equences which make

for the adoption and Ins tead of cognitive other adjus tment of a given terms are us ed, s uch as s ys t em. rational, analytic, logical and s ys tem II, Instead o f affective the words that are us ed are holistic, emotional, experiential and The academic concept of function s ys tem I. C onative is goes back to s ociologis ts s uch as als o referred to as Durkheim and Merton. The pragmatic practical, circums tantial concepts of function to the or action guided. contemporary philos opher S earle

22 Introduction

1.0 Introduction

This introduction is set up as an itinerary. Instead of an address the final destination is an answer to the question why some of the subscribers of a newspaper renew their subscription, even if their newspaper does not supply them with the kind of articles and photographs they prefer, and others do not. The itinerary shows us the roads to take and the obstacles to overcome on our way to the objective of this study. In the chart above the elements of this chapter are visualized. Three circumstances are responsible for the immediate cause of this study: 1. The ambivalent position of newspapers. On the one hand there is a definite decline of paid newspaper circulation: from 92% of all households in 1975 to 47% in 2010. On the other hand there still is a market penetration of around 50%. The mismatch between demand and perceived supply is so high that it is rational to expect that subscribers would end their subscription en masse. This is not the case. There is a decline over a long period, but not a massive exodus in a short period of time. The question remains how it is possible that some subscribers continue their subscription even if they do not think to get the kind of articles they want to read and the photographs they want to see. Their behavior does not seem to be very rational assuming there is a positive correlation between content and newspaper loyalty. 2. The lack of empirical data about newspapers. Apart from the long- term effort of the Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau to document meticulously the time people spend on reading a newspaper there is no empirical study about Dutch newspapers, let alone about the reasons for the ambivalent position of the newspapers in the Netherlands. 3. The status of the public discourse. The opinions about the reasons why the Dutch newspapers are not based on empirical investigation. The explanations focus on the decline, ignoring the substantial market penetration. We found empirical studies that showed how unpopular it is to investigate newspapers empirically. Of the thousands of publications in highly respected academic journals only a fraction is

23 Chapter 1

about newspapers and from this fraction a fraction can be labeled as empirical. The unpopularity of empirical research is understandable. Nor- mative thinking prevents researchers from being interested in the motives of the public, because it does not matter what the public thinks or feels. The authors know what a public want, the theory tells them what they ought to read, and what newspapers have to print. We want to understand, however, why some subscribers renew their subscription and others don’t. To answer this question we have to know how subscribers make the decision to renew, or not renew. With this objective in mind empirical research is inevitable. All conceivable explanations can be the result. No possible explanation must be excluded. Therefore we made sure that all independent variables were connected to one of the three ways that are known to come to a conclusion: the triad cognitive, affective and conative, also known as rational, emotional and action oriented model, also known as analytical, holistic and dynamic model, also known as system II and system I. We explain this in the chapter about basic assumptions: no monopoly of the rational model. In this chapter we cover three other basic assumptions: the construction of social reality, pragmatism and objective subjectivity. In the section about the construction of social reality we follow John Searle as he said that social reality is observer relative. Social reality exists thanks to the fact that people construct it. The concept of function is the main tool that helps people to construct social reality logically. The fact that social reality is ontologically subjective because people construct it does not mean that social reality is also subjective in an epistemic sense. We can be objective about subjectivity. The chapters on basic assumptions make the choices we have to make in the chapter on theoretical issues understandable. In this chapter we elucidate on the triad cognitive, affective and conative. We elaborate on the concept of need and we will show how newspaper subscribers struggle with the weakness of will. In this chapter we will explain why the concept of brand is an outstanding example of the affective holistic way to come to a conclusion, in our case to decide what to read.

24 Introduction

Finally we will introduce a way that distinguishes systematically one layout from another in order to test the assumption that layout has an impact on the reader’s perception of newspaper supply. In the chapter on theoretical issues we will explain why we define the concept of brand the way we do.

1.0.1 Overview In the past four decades the Dutch newspaper circulation was around 4 million copies. Most readers - between 80 and 90% - had a subscription. The absolute number of newspapers leaving the rotation press every day in those forty years suggests remarkable stability, but underneath this steady state, a tacit transformation has taken place that becomes visible if the number of households is taken into account. In 1975 the number of subscriptions measured 92% of the 4.7 million households; 40 years later this percentage dropped to 47% while the number of households reached 7.3 million.1

Table 1 Development paid circulation Dutch newspapers paid circulation 1975 4.215.117 1980 4.672.767 1985 4.474.755 1990 4.672.767 1995 5.096.453 2000 4.540.653 2005 4.275.102 2006 4.125.561 2007 4.112.788 2008 4.006.655 2009 3.941.838 2010 3.442.440

Cebuco, Hoi

25 Chapter 1

Table 2 Development paid circulation per 100 households paid circulation per paid circulation households household 1975 4.215.117 4561000 92% 1980 4.672.767 5006000 93% 1985 4.474.755 5613000 80% 1990 4.672.767 6061000 77% 1995 5.096.453 6469000 79% 2000 4.540.653 6801008 67% 2005 4.275.102 7090965 60% 2006 4.125.561 7146088 58% 2007 4.112.788 7190543 57% 2008 4.006.655 7242202 55% 2009 3.941.838 7312579 54% 2010 3.442.440 7354000 47% Cebuco, Hoi

Other European countries show a similar development with the exceptions of Ireland, Poland and Turkey where there was no decline, but a substantial increase in circulation.2 The numbers show a contradictory picture. On the one hand there is a definite decline in the newspaper market considering household subscription numbers. On the other hand, almost half the households in the Netherlands still have a newspaper subscription. Many an entre- preneur would look with envy at this kind of market penetration. It is remarkable that this confusing picture is not the subject of several empirical studies. Not in the Netherlands, nor in other countries. In the very beginning of this millennium there has been only Vandenbrande’s study of readers of popular newspapers in Flanders, Belgium. She tried to understand the logic of newspaper use in a Dutch-speaking newspaper population. She wanted “to supply empirical insights and theoretical reflections about the meaning and experience of newspaper reading”, particularly among the readers of the Flemish popular press. What position does the newspaper hold in their everyday lives? Why do they follow the news also via the daily press? And what attracts them to the hybrid popular journalism their paper supplies?3 In the 1970s, Van Cuilenburg and Noomen conducted empirical research on the ‘attachment’ of newspaper subscribers.4 In his study about De Tijd Van Cuilenburg concluded that perceived political discrepancy only played a minor role; except for a few cases this discrepancy never resulted in readers withdrawing their subscription.

26 Introduction

Apart from this there are no empirical studies that want to find out “why people read newspapers”, “why people buy newspapers”, “why they don’t buy newspapers”, or “why they did buy newspapers, but have stopped doing so”. Questions like these are about the interaction between a medium and the users of this medium and those questions are not high on the agenda of media science. To illustrate this point, six sets of similar research questions are visualized in the diagram 1 below. The rationale of the diagram is the interaction between media players: the medium, the user, the designer, and society. Or to put it differently: the newspaper, the reader, the journalist, and the public.5 Questions about the interaction can be both descriptive and explanatory. If they simply show what there is, they are called descriptive. If they explain why it is, they are labeled explanatory. The table following the diagram 1, table 3, specifies the kind of research questions that are grouped in the six categories in diagram 1.

1. The first category of questions is about the interaction between medium and user. “What do media users want to use?” “What do they want to buy?” “How homogeneous are those preferences?” “How do users perceive and experience a medium?” Those questions are all descriptive. 2. The second group of questions focuses on the interaction between journalists and media. Such questions are about the criteria that are used in selecting topics; or why journalists use the criteria that they use. 3. The interaction between journalists and users may generate questions about the way journalists perceive their users, the way users perceive journalists, or questions that explain the interaction; why journalists perceive users as they do. 4. The fourth interaction is between media and society. It describes or explains the mutual impact. 5. Questions about the designer and society are about the impact of society on the way journalists operate, or try to explain why the impact is as it is. 6. Questions about readers and society are about the impact of social developments on the preferences of users.

27 Chapter 1

All questions can be divided into two groups: as a description - what is the case?, or as an explanation - why is it the case?

Diagram 1

The next two tables illustrate the type of questions that are dominant in main media theories. Green means some degree of emphasis, blue means a strong emphasis. This overview shows that only a few theories pay some attention to the interaction between a medium and its users. Only two of them – theories within the realm of uses and gratification, and readership research – show an interest in newspapers. From what is left, only a small part of the studies have an empirical basis.

28 Introduction

Table 3 Media research questions Description Explanation What do users want to use? What do users want to buy? What causes users’ preferences? 1 Medium User How homogeneous are those Why do users perceive media the way preferences? they do? How do users perceive media? What criteria are used in selecting topics Why do journalists use the criteria that 2 Designer Medium and the approach? are used in the process of selecting? What is the journalists’ perception of Why do journalists perceive users as users? they do? 3 Designer User What is the users’ perception of Why do users perceive journalists as journalists? they do? What is the impact of media on society Why is the impact of media on society 4 Medium Society and what impact has society on media? and society on media as it is? What is the impact of society on Why is the impact of society on 5 Designer Society journalists and what is their impact on journalists and of journalists on society society? as it is? What is the impact of readers on society Why is the impact of readers on society 6 User Society and what impact does society have on and society on users as it is? users?

Table 4 User Medium Medium Designer User Designer Society Medium Society Designer Society User

1 2 3 4 5 6 Social Responsibility Peterson6 Media Supremacy Lasswell7 Limited Effects Klapper, Lazarsfeld8 Spiral of Silence Noelle-Neumann9 Media System Ball-Rokeach, De Fleur10 Dependency Theory Cultural Indicators Gerbner11 Agenda Setting, McCombs & Shaw Priming, Framing Scheufele12 Gatekeeping Shoemaker13

The absence of empirical research on newspaper readers is stated em- phatically by Vandenbrande. She points at a striking contradiction: on the one hand, newspapers are constantly considered to be of essential

29 Chapter 1 importance; on the other hand, newspapers and the reading of newspapers are not a research topic. The logic behind this paradox is based on the assumption that the newspaper provides citizens with necessary information more effectively than any other medium. The newspaper is the medium par excellence for providing civic information. The one who rejects newspapers and prefers lighter journalistic genres is under the influence of the laziness and the bad taste of the public.14 Vandenbrande argues that researchers do not want to find out what a newspaper audience thinks or feels, because they are convinced that they already know. Furthermore - according to this line of thought - the opinion of the readers is not relevant because it is not up to them to decide what a paper should write and a reader should read: the function of a newspaper is to contribute to democracy; there is no question about that. Papers should print articles that enable readers to be responsible citizens. And readers have an obligation to read those articles because it is their civic duty to be informed. If they decide not to behave like that it is because of their laziness and bad taste.15

Table 5 User Medium Medium Designer User Designer Medium Society Designer Society User Society Katz, Bumler, Gurevitch, Rosengren, Wenner, Uses & Gratification Palmgreen, Levy, Windahl17

British Cultural Studies Turner18

American Cultural Carey19 Studies Ethnographically Bausinger, Barnhurst, Inspired Public Studies Wartella20 Readership Research Bogart, Schönbach Readership Institute21

30 Introduction

Newspapers ought to write about social, political and economic issues, they are “a rational transfer of socially and politically useful information”.16 The most radical version of this view is called the theory of social responsibility that was originally formulated during and just after World War II in the United States of America by The Commission on Freedom of the Press. The Commission was assigned the task of evaluating the performance of the media, their freedom, function, and responsibili- ties and to make recommendations for possible regulation of the press. Preceded by a large number of reports, in 1947 the Commission published A Free and Responsible Press that is considered their main and conclusive publication. Theodore Peterson summarized the Commission’s ideas in The Social Responsibility Theory of the Press, one of the four theories of the press, that was published in 1956. Peterson considered - as did the Commis- sion - the reading of newspapers to be ‘a moral duty’, as something that we ought to do, because it is the citizen’s social responsibility to be informed. Man is very well capable of using his reason, Peterson asserts, “but he is loath to do so. Consequently, he is easy prey for demagogues, advertising pitchmen, and others who would manipulate him for their selfish ends. Because of his mental sloth, man has fallen into a state of unthinking conformity, to which his inertia binds him.”22 Empirical studies based on social responsibility theory are not designed to unveil the readers’ preference, to determine the meaning they give to newspapers, or to find out what kind of functions newspapers fulfill for the readers. Social responsibility research is intended to find out to what degree citizens comply with their moral obligation to inform themselves as well as they can. In other words: how intensively do they read the newspaper?23 In the 21st century, the mainstream tone of voice lacks this radical touch, but the core of what is stated above may count on wide support. It is not so difficult to find contemporary media studies that support the opinion that every individual has a social obligation to inform himself.24 The lack of empirical research on the decline of newspaper circulation and the abundance of normative theory is not restricted to the theory of social responsibility. Some ‘theories’ prescribe what a newspaper should contain and what readers should read. Other ‘theories’ restrict the explanation of reading a newspaper to one cause: the economic power of the newspaper industry, cultural dominance, or ritual.25

31 Chapter 1

Sociological theorizing and strong opinions about what newspapers should write and what readers should read, seem to be more dominant than describing what they do and explaining why they do it. This impression is not refuted by Bryant and Miron in “a systematic content analysis designed to examine the evolution of mass communication in the last half of the 20th century, as presented in the three oldest mainstream serial repositories of mass communication research in our discipline.”26 Bryant and Miron analyzed 1,806 of the approximate 7,200 articles that were published in the Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly (JMCQ), the Journal of Communication (JOC) and the Journal of Broad- casting & Electronic Media (JBEM) between 1956 and 2000.27 In total, 1393 references were made to 604 different theories, general scientific paradigms and schools of thought. Twenty-six of them were cited in ten or more articles and were labeled as the ‘top 26’. At least twelve of the 26 ‘theories’ are not about mass communication, or communication in general. In some cases they have an obvious political connotation, such as Marxism. In other cases the perspective is rooted in psychology, sociology, or cultural anthropology, such as psychoanalytical theory, behaviorism, functionalism, Piagian theory, and symbolic interactionism. According to Bryant and Miron, almost half of those references were ‘mere references’, a little more than a quarter provided a theoretical framework, almost 8% of the references were used to compare theories and almost 5% were used to criticize theories. Less than 3% of the references are related to empirical research and of this 3%, only a small proportion is about newspapers. From this small part a yet smaller part focuses on readers, whereas a fraction of that small section looks at the interaction between consumers and designers, between journalists and readers. In a similar study, Kamhawi and Weaver analyzed ten major mass communication journals between 1980 and 1999. They scrutinized 889 research articles from 501 issues.28 Unfortunately they did not mention the total number of articles the issues contained, so it is not possible to directly determine the proportion of empirical research. But with the data from the Bryant and Miron article, a reliable estimation can be made. According to them, the average number of articles in journals of communication is 13. This makes the contribution of empirical research around 7%.

32 Introduction

Of course it is better to determine the relative attention of empirical research by reviewing all the articles but this is outside the scope of this study. We consider our approach as second-best to make our point that empirical research in media studies is not at the top of the list.

1.1 Explanations

Despite the lack of empirical studies on the decline of newspaper circulation, the usual experts came up with numerous explanations, including the changing media landscape, dereading, individualization, the erosion of civic engagement, the decline of political participation, free newspapers, the Internet, less free time for the young and better- educated, a different newspaper experience, a decline in the habit of reading a newspaper, and the depillarization of Dutch society. A very brief review of the explanations.

1.1.1 Dereading Dereading, the tendency that people are reading less, especially if they are young, is regarded as an important contributor to the decline of newspaper popularity. It is argued that people read fewer books, magazines and newspapers because they prefer to watch television or surf the Internet. From 1975 onwards, the Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau carried out exhaustive research on how the Dutch spend their time. Those studies show that people read less especially if they are young. Adversaries argue that the studies are biased because they did not include reading the Internet, and text messages.

1.1.2 The changing media landscape The changing media landscape. Over the last 10 years the interaction between the sources of news, the messengers of the news and the consumers of news has changed fundamentally. A relatively transparent and static system has transformed into a nervous pandemonium. In the old days, the news sources – such as governmental organizations – needed mass media if they wanted to communicate with the public. Diagram 2 below visualizes the change. The three circles show the stakeholders involved: the news source, the journalist and the public. The news source can be a governmental organization, a company, a trade union, or a soccer team. The journalist can be anyone who

33 Chapter 1 informs the general public or a specific audience about what is happening in the world. And, as we will see, that can be any conceivable topic. Arrows and brackets are in two colors: blue stands for a relationship that has already existed for many years, red stands for relationships that are new. So if the municipal authorities wanted the public to be informed about a certain topic from their perspective, the only way to do so was to influence journalists. They never knew beforehand if their efforts would be successful. There was no direct connection between the news source and the general public. Instead two relationships were involved: the blue arrows 1 and 4. In the last decade this phased way of communicating has changed. At this moment there is a strong red arrow 5. If the municipal authorities want the public to be informed about a certain topic they put the news on their official site in a way that is convenient to them. They bring the news from their perspective. In the new media structure, the traffic also developed the other way around. Arrow 5 illustrates the information flow that is sent directly by the newsmakers to the public without the intervention of media. There is an additional arrow 6, because the public takes the initiative too. If a citizen wants to check some rumor about skyscrapers to be built in the city centre he googles to the municipal website to find out what was decided by the Council. There are more new relationships. Within the three media domains, there is a media system of its own. Designers and consumers of news change places all the time. For example, take twitter. Some tweeters are active, they produce many tweets, whereas others read tweets but hardly ever make them. Some tweeters have many followers because of their reputation. Some of the popular tweeters base their popularity on specific expertise, whereas other popular tweeters become popular because they are famous. Others consider themselves as tweet consumers. The role you play can be different from one person to another. It is also possible that the role changes in time, or according to a subject.

34 Introduction

Diagram 2: Interaction between newssource, public and journalist.

In the table below we made an inventory of the various communicative relationships between the public, journalists and the producer of news (the news source). The table does not pretend to be exhaustive. Its function is merely illustrative.

Table 6: Relation between news source, public and journalist Public Journalists News Source Hyves Sms User generated content Public Twitter Blogs Website Letter to the editor Linkedin Mashups Dailies Press agency Press conferences Journalists Magazines Radio news Blogs Interviews TV Trade journal Corporate site Spin doctors Press release Corporate Custom media PR officials Producer of News Press conference Magazines Blogs Spokes Corporate site Internet persons

35 Chapter 1

1.1.3 Individualization Individualization is the process that increases the autonomy of individuals to organize their own lives, or to phrase it differently. Individu- alization makes individuals less dependent on the people that surround them. People make their own choices in an increasing range of activities. There is less coercion and less social control than there used to be. More people take their fate in their own hands. No one forces a woman to become a mother, but if she wants to become a mother nobody will stop her either, even if she is 50-years-old and even if medical science has to help. And if we are not satisfied with the way we look we may as well have a total make-over.29 Individualization is autonomization, becoming autonomous. Individualization is also seen as a process of self-orientation. Indi- viduals are more oriented towards their own lives than towards public life. As a result – it is argued - people have no need to be informed about a distant, anonymous world.30 Individualization may end in the erosion of civic engagement.30 The definition of a responsible citizen is changing. Voluntary associations see their members leaving and find it difficult to replace them, while members treat the associations more and more as facilitators of their individual interests.31 The fading away of the autonomous political function of trade unions in the Netherlands is an illustration of this process. It is argued that this erosion of civic engagement stimulates the decline of readership.32

1.1.4 Free newspaper In the public debate, the development of free newspapers is mentioned as a reason for the decline of paid Dutch newspaper circulation. In 2007, the four free daily papers exceeded a circulation of more than a million.33 According to Bakker, in 2007 there were free newspapers in 52 countries. About 70 million people read the 40 million copies that were produced. It is Bakker’s view that free newspapers may weaken the position of traditional newspapers but that there is no indication of a great deal of cannibalism as many readers of free newspapers did not read a paid newspaper prior to that.34

1.1.5 Internet The proliferation of Internet sites that bring news quickly and, in most cases, also for free is another mentioned cause. The number of free news sites has increased rapidly in the past ten years and the average

36 Introduction number of monthly visitors is increasing with 50-100% or more every year.35

1.1.6 Diminishing free time Diminishing free time for some social categories is mentioned as a reason just as the increased supply of leisure activities. People below the age of 50, especially the more educated, have less free time than in the 1970s. People above the age of 50, as well as the less educated, have more free time.36 It is argued that a growing number of people no longer experience the newspaper as a necessary medium that you cannot miss, not even for a day. Reading a newspaper the same time everyday is not taken for granted anymore. It is assumed that fewer people read a newspaper out of habit .

1.1.7 Depillarization The emancipation of Dutch citizens - known in the Netherlands as the depillarization of Dutch society - is mentioned as a cause for newspaper decline. The argument goes as follows: Until the time depillarization became visible, Dutch society was built on pillars: a protestant, Catholic, social-democratic or liberal pillar. Social life took place within the confines of the pillar you lived in as is said in Dutch. All social categories in Dutch society behaved according to this lifestyle and had their own newspapers.37 Because of depillarization of Dutch society since the 1960s, people stopped being ‘a member’ of a newspaper. In popular language, a subscription was - and still is occasionally - referred to as a membership. The members transformed gradually into consumers. The newspapers gradually transformed from a symbol of pillarization into a product, with or without a clear social or political identity. In the 1970s the politically engaged considered the reading of a particular newspaper to be a political statement. In the case of de Volks- krant, its new progressive political identity corresponded with that of its new young readers. This resulted in a major increase in circulation.38 In the case of De Tijd, the new progressive political identity of the paper did not correspond with that of the readers. Eventually the liquidation of the paper became inevitable. In the 1980s and 1990s, as the identity of Dutch political parties became less clear and large numbers of Dutch voters switched parties

37 Chapter 1 after every election, it became more difficult for newspapers to profile themselves politically. Despite the gloomy picture of the decline of newspapers, the number of households in the Netherlands with a newspaper subscription exceeds the numbers that should give cause for gloom. On top of that, the number of people that never read a newspaper is negligible. A market penetration of more than 50% needs celebration rather than mourn.40 Yet the newspaper has lost its firm position in everyday routine, that moment of relaxation, those few minutes of enjoyment - reading a paper.41

1.2 Scrutinizing the usual answers

Most of the explanations for the decline of newspaper sales that are mentioned in the public debate seem to make sense. Isn’t it true that all those television stations and Internet sites compete heavily with the old-fashioned paper news? Is it not true that the newspaper subscriber has lost his membership status? And is it not true that more people are much more interested in their own world than in the world of great institutions and grand statesmen? Nevertheless, the explanations have not been put to an empirical test. A closer look at the structure of the argumentation has made clear that at least five explanations are logically fallacious. The social and cultural factors presented as a cause for newspaper decline do not explain the decline. At best they explain a change in demand. The decline could be caused by a discrepancy between perceived supply and demand. This would be the case if a change in demand did not result in a change in perceived supply. To illustrate this line of reasoning we take the individualization argument. The argument is as follows: Because of the individualization of society, fewer people, especially young people, are interested in public affairs, fewer people want to know what goes on in politics and more people are focused on the issues of everyday life. As a result, more people do not have the urge to read newspapers. As a result, the demand for newspapers declines. The first step in the structure of the explanation claims that individualization is responsible for a change in demand. People, especially younger people, are more interested in their own small world, than in

38 Introduction the big world and this change in orientation results in a demand for more practical news, more news about topics that affect everyday life, and less about public affairs, politics and foreign affairs. Whether the assertion is true that, as a result of individualization, people are more interested in their small world than in the big world is not relevant at this point. Even if this statement is correct, the conclusion that follows is not necessarily right. The fact that people are more interested in their own world does not imply that they stop buying newspapers. Individualization may explain a change in demand, but does not explain a decline in newspaper sales, because a change in demand does not necessarily result in reluctance to buy a newspaper. That could be the case if the change in demand did not affect the perceived supply. If people want a different kind of newspaper and the newspaper adapts to the new demand, why would a consumer stop buying that newspaper? The statement that individualization is a cause for the decline of newspaper sales jumps to this conclusion by ignoring the argument that a change in demand – caused by individualization - has not resulted in a change of supply. The argument that the erosion of civic engagement and the decline of political participation explain the decrease in newspaper sales suffers from the same fallacy. The erosion of civic engagement could explain a change in demand, but does not explain a decline in newspaper sales. As with individualization, the decline could only be explained if a change in demand did not result in a change of supply. In that case, the discrepancy between demand and supply causes the decline, not the erosion of civic engagement. There is some empirical evidence that a change in demand does not result in a change of supply. Green (1999) found a lack of adaptation to a change in demand in the newsrooms of Australian newspapers and discovered that the organizational structure and culture of those newsrooms condemns the papers to continuing failure to implement recommended content changes.42 His study revealed, as did others before, that some journalists decide to ignore all research findings as a matter of principle. “(…) even basic demographic research work could impinge on journalistic freedom of expression and is therefore best to be regarded with suspicion or, preferably, ignored all together”.43 After studying how CBS, NBC, Newsweek and Time decide what they consider news, Gans (1980) wrote that he was surprised to find that reporters had little knowledge about the actual audience and rejected

39 Chapter 1 feedback from it. They did have a vague image of the audience, but paid little attention to it. “Instead, they filmed and wrote for their superiors and for themselves, assuming, (…) that what interested them would interest the audience”.44 What about dereading, free newspapers, the Internet and less free time? How do those arguments connect to supply and demand? Less free time implies that people have to decide if reading a newspaper still fits in their limited reading time. The more the newspaper answers to the demand, the bigger the chance that a user will keep buying the paper, even if time becomes scarce. The chance of reading a newspaper increases if perceived supply meets demand. The same reasoning is applicable against the argument that free newspapers cause the decline of newspaper sales. The chance that newspaper customers stop buying a newspaper increases if they are more satisfied with the perceived supply and demand ratio from free newspapers than with the perceived supply, demand and cost ratio from the paid newspapers. Again the decline must be looked at from a supply and demand perspective. The impact of the proliferation of online news on newspaper sales can also be looked at from this point of view. If newspaper customers are satisfied with the supplied product there is a smaller chance that they will leave their familiar newspaper for an unfamiliar site. Two arguments remain: a different newspaper experience and the habit of reading a newspaper. Both arguments are not directly linked to the content of the newspaper, but to social, cultural and psychological phenomena. Buying a newspaper is not only inspired by its content. “There is evidence that ‘something else’ besides particular content alone is at work in the attraction of Americans to newspapers, and that the ‘something’ may be habit,” writes Bentley.45 In defining the demand for newspapers it is necessary to include social, cultural and psychological functions. Then it will be possible to determine the relative impact they have on newspaper consuming behavior. After this brief analysis of arguments that dominate the public debate about the decline of newspaper sales, the conclusion is that at least five of them do not explain decline. At best they explain a change in demand. The explanation of decline literally jumps to that conclusion.

40 Introduction

1.3 The definition of the problem

The lack of empirical research motivates us to collect a substantial amount of empirical data that gives us the opportunity to determine whether newspaper readers get the kind of articles and pictures they want. In case of a mismatch the question is that despite the fact that they do not get the kind of articles and pictures they want there are subscribers that stay loyal nevertheless. Why are they doing this? Why do some stay loyal and others don’t? What causes newspaper loyalty?

1.4 Conceptual and theoretical issues

If there is a change in demand and if supply does not adjust to the change (step 1), there will be a discrepancy between demand and supply. This discrepancy could cause the decline (step 2). There are two opposite theories of how newspaper readers perceive and evaluate supply: the analytical-empirical and the holistic-affective approach. 1. The first theory assumes that readers are specific and articulate in their preferences and empirical in the way they determine if the supply meets their demand. They do not merely read their newspaper but scrutinize it. 2. The second theory assumes that newspaper readers are general and biased in the way they judge supply. Their expectations about what a newspaper will offer are so deeply rooted in their minds that the expectations have transformed into convictions commonly known as ‘brands’. A brand is both an expectation and a validation. If the brand is strong and positive, the user is not only convinced of what he will get, but knows in advance that he will be satisfied with what the future will bring, even if a test that compares demand with perceived supply shows that the users do not get what they want. In the real world - we assume - newspaper loyalty is not the result of an analytical, logical and empirical comparison, but is the result of a holistic evaluation. If brand image is strong and positive then the consumer remains loyal. There are three steps in the structure of the holistic argument. The first step is the relation between brand and product perception; people see what they expect to see, not necessarily what is there. If the brand

41 Chapter 1 is strong and positive the perception of supply is positive which results - and this is step two - in a satisfied reader. The third step is the assumption that satisfied readers are more loyal than dissatisfied readers. The question is which of the two theories predicts newspaper loyalty better: the holistic, or the analytical approach. Marketing theories claim that the less a consumer is able to determine the product’s quality, in other words the less a consumer is able to determine if the product is fit for use, the more product perception, satisfaction and loyalty are determined by brand image.46 The research elaborates on the distinction originally made by Darby and Karni between search, experience and credence attributes.47 The quality of a product with search attributes can be determined before purchase. A banana that does not have a bright yellow peel, but has a brown, almost black appearance does not invite the potential customer to put money on the table, and a peace of tuna that is a bit grey and has a strong fish smell does not give the impression of being fresh. The quality of a product with experience attributes can only be established by using it. Nice table linen is no guarantee for a nice diner and a pudding that looks like a tasty pudding is not necessary a tasty pudding for, as we know, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. In case of products with credence attributes, it is not possible for a consumer to establish its quality objectively. When filling the tank of a car with petrol the average car user is not able to separate good gasoline from better gas, or even bad gas. The impact of brand on product loyalty is stronger with credence or experience attributes than with products with search attributes. If product quality is not tangible, the consumers are more susceptible to expectations of product performance that are molded by the images of social and cultural environment stored in their heads than in the case of evident quality. Next to brand layout is a second feature that may indirectly influence newspaper loyalty. Indirectly, because first there may be an impact of layout on the perception of newspaper supply. A layout with many, intense and differently shaped elements induces different expectations of the newspaper’s supply than a layout with a few, low-key, similarly shaped elements (1). And secondly there may be an impact of the perception of newspaper supply on newspaper loyalty (2). A combination of (1) and (2) makes for (3) the impact of layout on newspaper loyalty.48 Schönbach comes to the conclusion that layout determines the success

42 Introduction of a newspaper directly. We found that layout determines the expectation of supply and that this perceived supply predicts newspaper loyalty. It was said before that there were two opposite theories on the way readers perceive and evaluate newspaper supply: the analytical-empirical and the holistic-affective approach. This dichotomy can also be labeled as rational and emotional or cognitive and affective. Some are not satisfied with this dichotomy and state there are more than two relevant variables, that the dichotomy is in fact a triad. Next to cognition and affection there is the concept of conation.

1.4.1 The heterogeneity of the audience Newspaper readers are not a homogeneous category. Some people know exactly what they want and are able to articulate their preferences with some kind of precision and make a comparative assessment of newspaper content. Others are guided by tradition, habit or the need to show their identity. They do not really think about their intentions when buying a paper, let alone make a conscious decision. “We always read a newspaper where I come from”. Or: “Only after the newspaper strike, did I realize that I used to read my newspaper every day after dinner”. And: “I read this paper, because it is what people like me do.” It can be assumed that a substantial number of people only know what they want after they have seen what they can get. They may be heavily influenced by the newspaper’s brand as they evaluate supply, or they may not be easily swayed by images. So, if we want to know what influences the decision to cancel a newspaper subscription we should not exclude the possibility that the answer differs from one group of subscribers to the next. Besides middle range theories that are restricted to a particular field, contingent theories that “must be designed to fit the situational demands” we acknowledge ‘cluster theories’ that are contingent as well.49 The contingency does not depend on the situation, but on similar behavior, similar motives, needs and preferences.

1.5 The pragmatic concept of function

The pragmatic concept of function is introduced to deal with the problems that accompany the main quests. The concept of function is the

43 Chapter 1 theoretical tool for developing a taxonomy to describe newspaper content. This makes it possible to describe readers’ preferences. For once there are words to describe the stories and pictures in a newspaper, one could ask a reader what kind of stories and pictures he prefers. The function of an artefact, like a newspaper, enables a user to accomplish the results he expects to accomplish. If the designer of the artefact intended those results, the ability is called a primary function. If the user is able to accomplish results that were not the designer’s intention, the ability is called a secondary function. The primary functions of newspapers are about its content: the text, pictures, and presentation. The secondary functions are the social, cultural and psychological results the newspaper enables the user to realize, like having a moment for oneself, showing one’s identity, or proving to be ‘one of us’. In order to test the assumption that there is a discrepancy between the demand and supply of newspapers, we first have to describe both primary and secondary functions and compare them. The way we use the concept of function has little to do with functionalism as it has been defined in mass communication since the famous article by Lasswell, written just after the Second World War. Mainstream mass communication practice places the concept of function within the paradigm of functionalism that was developed by sociologists such as Robert Merton, Talcot Parsons, and cultural anthropologists such as Emile Durkheim, Radcliffe-Brown and Malinowski.50 Within this framework, function is defined as “those observed consequences which make for the adaptation and adjustment of a given system”.51 Functionalism tries to observe what a newspaper does to the adaptation and adjustment of the given system, intended, but especially unintended. The pragmatic definition of function focuses on intended consequences. It is action-oriented, which means that it tries to describe and understand the behavior of agents in a specific situation. In the case of newspapers, the actors are the producers, journalists and users; more specifically the publisher, the journalist and the consumer. Of course actors are part of a system, and as a consequence influence the system as well as being influenced by it. This mutual impact is important if we want to know why consumers behave as they do, or if we want to explain the impact of consumer behavior on society. But those two interesting questions are not part of our research plan.

44 Introduction

We want to focus this study on the behavior of journalists and users. We want to know how they define the situation they are in, how they construct social reality. We do not want to get into the question as to why. The main tool consumers use in this process of construction is the pragmatic concept of function. This concept is embedded in the heritage of American pragmatism and the contemporary philosophical realm of John R. Searle.52 Searle introduced a concept of function that enables people in everyday life to construct social reality. “This is because social reality is created by us for our purposes and seems as readily intelligible to us as those purposes themselves. Cars are for driving; dollars for earning, spending and saving; bathtubs for bathing. But once there is no function, there is no answer to the question, What’s it for? We are left with a harder intellectual task of identifying things in terms of their intrinsic features without reference to our interests, purposes and goals.”53 Let us try to clarify this point with an example. If we gave a newspaper to somebody who had never seen a newspaper before – let’s say an Egyptian who had time-travelled from the land of the pharaohs – and we asked him what it was he was holding in his hand, there is a good chance that he would say that it was a collection of stretched, poor quality papyrus rolls painted with incomprehensible symbols. After the pharaoh’s subject had spoken he would look slightly confused in our direction as if to say he wanted some clarification. We would then explain that those paper sheets were indeed some sort of papyrus and that the symbols on the papyrus were like hieroglyphics, symbols that enable people to write down stories. We would tell him that the stories were about what was happening in our land and that we print a lot of these paper sheets and send them all over the country so that people know what is happening in their land. The Egyptian would be relieved of his confusion once we described this alien object of a newspaper in terms of its function. Now imagine the remote jungle of Borneo, known for its head-hunters who had never seen a stranger set foot on their land; where nobody had ever seen a newspaper, or anything that resembled a newspaper, or anything with characteristics that resembled a newspaper. This time no papyrus, no hieroglyphics. So the first time the head-hunters saw a newspaper they studied and deliberated for hours. Finally they boiled the paper and ate it.

45 Chapter 1

We need this cliché to allow a Gedankenspiel, a thought experiment, that illustrates the necessity of the concept of function when we want to give meaning to an object. The Egyptian was not able to use the concept of function because he did not have enough background information to come up with the function of those sheets on his own. But with a little help, papyrus and hieroglyphics were used to explain the function of a newspaper. The head-hunters had no background information at all that was linked to the intended functions of the newspaper and therefore they linked the intrinsic features of the newspaper to the only background information they could come up with. And thus they came to the only logical conclusion: boil it and eat it. If we want to explain the meaning of a product, but we are not able to use a pragmatic concept of function - for instance, because the people we are addressing have no relevant background information - then we are in trouble. The concept of function helps both the designer and the user. The designer, because it forces him to think what the artefact enables a user to accomplish. The user, because it enables him to be specific about his preferences. But perhaps users do not want to be specific, or are not able to be specific. Maybe their preferences are very fuzzy and in their realm of vagueness there is no room for analytical tools that assume users to be argumentative and factual in their newspaper consumer behavior. Or maybe some uses are specific and others are not. Maybe some people are more influenced by the process of institutionalization and socialization than others. If that is the case, this should have consequences for the methods of research. Next to a method that assumes an analytical approach by consumers we should include a more holistic way of reality construction.

1.6 The holistic concept of brand

We will measure demand and perceived supply analytically as well as holistically using the pragmatic concept of function and the concept of brand. The first tool assumes rationality in the decision-making process. This means that consumers try to get facts and intend to use reasoning. It is not important if the structure of the arguments is not logically flawless. The only thing that matters is the intention.

46 Introduction

The second tool is holistic. Here logical argumentation is not a necessary condition. Sentiments, emotions and associations will do. One sees an image, one has a feeling. But in the case of a brand, the images and feelings are not idiosyncratic. On the contrary, a brand is only a brand if it is shared by a group of people. One could say that a brand is the institutionalized opinion of a product.

1.6.1 Description This study starts with a description of demand and perceived supply in order to determine if supply meets demand. It does not try to explain the demand. It does not try to answer the question why people have the preferences they have. The same counts for supply. We do not try to answer the questions of what determines the choices journalists make, why they write about particular issues and why they present the information as they do, why they adapt to a change in demand if there is one, or why they do not. Why do we refrain from explaining the origins of demand and supply? There is a practical and a theoretical reason for this decision. The practical reason is that describing and explaining the supply of and demand for Dutch daily newspapers is not an endeavor for a single study but more an objective for a research program. We have to set priorities. As it is impossible to explain what has not been described yet, we must start with the description. The theoretical reason was given by Piet Verschuren. In his inaugural address in 2002 Verschuren made the observation that explanation is the most important value amongst academics, description is much less important.54 It is a mistake to look down on description, as it is a mistake to look up to explanation, he said. De- spite “the primacy of explanatory research”, it has some severe limitations. Causal knowledge does not necessarily mean that the one who understands automatically controls. Knowing why things are the way they are does not mean that we can act accordingly. Implementation depends on the cooperation of all the powerful stakeholders and their cooperation must not be taken for granted. On the contrary, the most powerful stakeholders are very well capable of sabotaging a promising implementation. Their interest is not necessarily in line with what has to be done to achieve a successful implementation. It is even possible that it is in the interest of powerful stakeholders not to solve the problem.

47 Chapter 1

In practice, the situation is more complex, as powerful stakeholders do not necessarily agree about the way to solve the problem and in practice there is not necessarily consensus among experts about the solution. The one who is responsible for solving the problem is rarely able to alter the position, or the opinion of the powerful. Despite the limitations of explanatory research, description is looked upon with disdain. Verschuren quotes a teacher who complained that most of the papers he had to review were “mere descriptions”. The students took the teacher’s remark as a strong disqualification, because “science is explanation”. The second part of our empirical research has a more explanatory fla- vor as we want to unveil the relative impact of primary and secondary functions, delivering, brand, access, habit, tradition, price, free papers and media alternatives on newspaper loyalty.

1.6.2 Newspaper subscribers In 2009 more than 90% of the Dutch paid newspaper circulation was in subscriptions. This probably has to do with the specific Dutch phenomena that is known as ‘pillarization’, the Dutch answer to the problems that arise when you are living with a lot of minority groups in a very small country. The core of the solution was to minimize social interaction. Everything they had to do they did within the safety of their own minority that consisted of Catholics, various groups of Protestants, Social Democrats and people who call themselves Liberal because they believe in a liberal market economy. This proliferation of newspaper subscriptions is one of the reasons this study is focused on newspaper subscribers. But this Dutch id- iosyncrasy is not the only reason to focus on subscribers. The Dutch population has ended up in a confusing situation. On the one hand there is a clear decline in paid newspapers if the growth of the number of households is taken into account (from 92% in 1975 to 47% in 2010). On the other hand, the total number of paid newspapers still is around 4 million, which is almost 50% of all households. This looks more like an eroding subscription share than an alarmingly low market share. There is a decline in newspaper sales, but there are still a lot of newspapers sold. As more than 90% of the paid circulation is sold by subscription, the decline in this situation is best explained by discover- ing the determinants of newspaper loyalty. It is a matter of newspaper loyalty if newspaper subscribers exclude the possibility ending their

48 Introduction subscription, the proof of a previous commitment to the newspaper in question.

1.7 Research design

This study is divided into in a theoretical and an empirical section. The theoretical section serves six objectives: (1) It articulates the basic assumptions that influenced the choices we have made in the design and the execution of this study. (2) It elaborates upon theoretical issues we have to address. (3) It explains the pragmatic concept of function. (4) It describes and explains the taxonomic model that is used to describe newspaper content. (5) It describes and elucidates the conceptional framework this study is based on. (6) It stipulates the hypotheses that will be tested in the empirical section of this study. The empirical section includes three major topics. (a) The operationalization of the concepts from the conceptional model into measurable questions. (b) The presentation of the empirical results, both from the surveys and the content analyses. (c) The discussions of our findings.

1.7.1 The theoretical section In chapter 1 of the theoretical section we will try to give account of our basic assumptions. We will illustrate that social reality is a human construction and therefore ontologically subjective. Following Searle, we take the position that ontological subjectivity does not imply epistemological subjectivity. The assumption that social reality is a man-made construction does not imply that statements about that construction cannot be independent of what we feel, or think. We explain, as we learned from Searle, that ontological subjectivity does not exclude epistemological objectivity. We will compare our position with the rela- tivist approach of the notion that reality is a social construction. We will explain why there is a fundamental difference between “the social construction of reality” and the “construction of social reality.”

49 Chapter 1

Finally, in the chapter on basic assumptions, we will illustrate what we call our pragmatic approach. How is it possible to make general statements about practice if practice by definition differs from situation to situation? In the next chapter we will address theoretical issues that are relevant to this study. Those disputes are linked to the problem of (a) demand, (b) perceived supply and (c) purchase and loyalty.

1.7.2 Demand We start the discussion of demand with the controversy between the view that people rationally decide to buy a newspaper because of their need for a particular content and the opinion that buying or reading a newspaper has little to do with content, but everything to do with ritual, habit or emotional experience. In media science these opposing views are represented by what is called mainstream research and cultural studies.55 In marketing, similar arguments are exchanged between the representatives of mainstream brand theory and the protagonists of experience marketing.56 A second set of disputes is about audience. How to define audience? How homogeneous is an audience? What is the distinction between audience, target group and what is called the ‘reader circle’?57 The question is whether an audience looks for a certain gratification and determines afterwards if the gratification has been obtained or whether the process is much less rational, analytical and content-related; or more habitual, ritual, and determined by cultural mechanisms.58 A third issue is the problem of ‘need’. Is there such a thing as need, and if there is, what is the nature if it? Should it be linked to the idea of basic human needs or is it better to speak about preferences, desires, or functions?59 Needs, preferences and desires can be clear and specific, or vague and fuzzy. We believe that language and thoughts are bound to be fuzzy and vague. Language itself can cause inevitable imprecision, as is illustrated by the Sorites paradox. A clear, unambiguous and precise language requires so many conditions – some of them rather complicated - that in everyday life nobody will be able to meet those conditions. Even among philosophers and linguists the proper application of those conditions is debatable.

50 Introduction

We will explain that the existence of words and the processes of institutionalization help people in everyday life to construct social reality as the definition of recurring situations is internalized. People do not always act according to their own standards. Such can be the case when a newspaper reader believes he should start to read a particular article, but because of ‘the weakness of the will’ he starts reading another.60

1.7.3 Perceived supply The first perceived supply problem we address is the difficulty of describing what is offered. Is it possible to describe the content of a newspaper in a way that is both relevant to the practice of designers and users, journalists and readers? The second issue is the impact of presentation. Schönbach showed that a difference in layout explained newspaper success a little more than a difference in content.61 We want to find out if a different layout will cause a different expectation for a newspaper. If brand influences readers’ perception of supply, it influences expectations and even satisfaction. How important is newspaper brand- image, both on the level of the newspaper in general (brand category) and in the case of a particular newspaper?

1.7.4 Purchase and loyalty To what extent is the purchase of a newspaper influenced by the satisfaction regarding perceived supply both in terms of content as well as non-content or by access and opportunity costs? Is there a cheaper way to get the same gratification, or does a marginal improvement of gratification justify the price? The third chapter of the theoretical section is exclusively about a major theoretical notion of this study: the concept of function. We will explain what function is and why the concept is so important to us; why we use the concept of function to specify the object of demand and what is the function of function. This treatise results in a definition of function, primary functions and secondary functions. We will show the difference between what we call pragmatic function and academic function. Chapter 5 is devoted to a taxonomy of newspaper content. This taxonomy is an elaboration of the primary functions of the newspaper. We start this chapter by comparing our approach with similar studies in applied linguistics. After that we define and illustrate the concepts we

51 Chapter 1 use, one by one. In separate paragraphs we define and illustrate the seven functions and five perspectives. We distinguish and we define and illustrate what we call areas of interest and the function of presentation. Chapter 6 of the theoretical section is a description of the conceptual model that sketches the structure of this study. We will define the various concepts and explain the rationale of the framework. Chapter 8 explains the hypotheses that will be tested.

1.7.5 The empirical section The empirical section starts with a chapter that describes methodological questions: how is the research set up, what techniques are used and why. The structure of Van Cuilenburg’s dissertation is used as an example.62 Following his example, we combine survey with content analysis. This method enables us to compare demand, perceived supply and the perception of supply of the primary functions. The measurement of the secondary functions is based entirely on the survey. We conducted surveys in 2006 and 2008. The 2006 survey was a random sample of the Dutch public over 15 years of age. (n = 2003) In 2008 we conducted a roughly identical survey. This time the sample was around 4000 and, in addition, the same survey was conducted among the readers of all national newspapers. The magnitude of the second survey makes cluster analysis possible. After an introductory first chapter, in the second chapter we will op- erationalize the concepts that are defined in the conceptual framework into the actual survey questions. In chapter 7 of the empirical section we will summarize the survey results. This includes a summary of the content analysis and an additional explanation of the method we used. A comprehensive overview of the results of the survey and the content analysis are presented in an appendix. Chapter 8 contains the test of the hypotheses we formulated. Chapter 9 is reserved for the conclusions and possible consequences we draw from the tested hypotheses. In an epilogue we will paint a panorama, the function of which is to speculate about the future of the newspaper. Of course speculation is not a category that belongs to the domain of media science, except when its pretensions are limited to the logic of discovery and the speculations are merely suggestions for research that could be initiated.

Section I:

The theoretical section

We believe that the primary function of research in the social sciences is to improve the quality of answers to practical questions. Practical questions are the questions about the problems people face in everyday life “as opposed to the scientist-defined problems of the laboratory”, writes Checkland.63 The scientific method sees to it that the process of finding those answers is systematically executed. Theories, theoretical models and conceptual frameworks are tools that enable research to achieve that objective. They are important tools, crucial tools, but they are tools, instruments; a means to an end; objectives in the quest for practical answers. The scientific method implies that basic assumptions are made explicit and concepts are defined as rigorously as possible. After this is done the media scientist should formulate hypotheses in order to start an empirical endeavour. This enumeration of our scientific ob- ligations serves as an outline for the three objectives of this ‘theoretical section’ as will be presented in the chapters 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. In chapter 2, we intend to make explicit the basic assumptions that influenced the choices we will make in the design and the execution of this study: objective subjectivity, the construction of social reality, the monopoly of rationality, and pragmatism. The charts at the beginning of each chapter intend to visualize the content of the chapter. In chapter 3 we will elaborate on the theoretical issues we expect to encounter. In chapter 4 we will focus on the concept of function. In chapter 5 the concept of function is our main tool in constructing a taxonomy that enables us to describe the content of a newspaper. Chapter 6 stipulates the hypotheses that will be tested in the empirical section of this study.

Chapter 2 Basic assumptions Chapter 2

bas ic as s umptions

objective the cons truction no monopoly pragmatis m s ubjectivity of s ocial reality on rationality

S earle S earle J ames : what is social reality reas oning when a ontologically is obs erver is not the dis pute s ubjective relative, only way has no is not it exists to come practical neces s arily thanks to to a cons equences epis temically human conclus ion the dis pute s ubjective cons truction is idle

as a the concept the affective cons equence of function and conative it is not is an es s ential way to true that every tool come to a s tatement is cons tructing conclus ion right becaus e s ocial does not everybody's reality need to opinion rationaly reas on is s ubjective

60 Basic assumptions

2.0 Introduction

We consider an assumption ‘basic’ if it determines the way we look at the world. Basic assumptions grind the lenses through which we observe social reality. The objective of this chapter is to make our basic assumptions known to the reader. By doing this, we intend to transform the tacit criteria we apply when we turn choices into manifest criteria. This seems a reasonable gesture, but we should not take for granted that it is possible. There are reasons to believe that this is not the case. First of all it presupposes comprehensive knowledge about both world views and assumptions that could be basic. Nobody is able to make an exhaustive list of all basic assumptions and all possible world views. The second reason implies the list to be final. This is not acceptable, as finality implies closure and closure is contradictory to the necessary openness of scientific practice. The logic of scientific discovery is never final, but is always an unending quest. Thirdly it is possible that a person looks at the world from a specific perspective without being aware of that perspective. It is also possible that a person is very much aware, but does not want to reveal his basic assumption to the world, because of tactical reasons, or because the person is ashamed to admit he follows a particular basic assumption. Because it is impossible to know all perspectives that determine all world views, let alone put them to words and because one may not take for granted that all world views are manifest; and because it is conceivable that a person does not want to admit he looks at the world from a specific perspective. Because all of that we are faced with a dilemma. We believe that it is necessary to make our basic assumptions known to the reader. At the same time we believe that it is not possible to do so systematically and exhaustively. One way out of the dilemma is to walk away in silence. Another way out is to accept both sides of the dilemma and act accordingly. So we write down the basic assumptions we are aware of.

61 Chapter 2

2.1 Objective subjectivity

Our first basic assumption is that social reality is a construction. Without experience there is no social reality. Social reality owes its existence to the observers. In contrast, non-social reality does not need an observer to exist. A stone is a stone even if no man has ever seen that stone, whereas a stone is only a paperweight if somebody uses it as a paperweight. A stone is only a paperweight if somebody has assigned the function of a paperweight to that stone. Somebody has made a construction of social reality. A stone is not part of social reality, whereas a stone that is used as a paperweight is. The stone is an objective brute fact, the stone as a paperweight is a subjective construction of social reality. The basic assumption that social realty is a construction rests on the work of John Searle, particularly his The Construction of Social Reality.64 It is essential for the understanding of Searle’s thinking in this matter that the subjectivity that comes with the construction of social reality does not imply the impossibility to make objective statements about this subjective reality. The confusion is caused, Searle writes, because another distinction is ignored: the difference between epistemology and ontology. The subjectivity of social reality is ontological, but the objectivity of a statement about social reality is epistemological. Ontological subjectivity does not imply epistemological subjectivity. Ergo: objective subjectivity is possible. “Epistemic objectivity and subjectivity are features of claims. A claim is epistemically objective if its truth or falsity can be established independently of the feeling, attitudes and preferences (...) of the makers and interpreters of the claim. (…) Ontological subjectivity and objectivity are features of reality.” They are subjective if “their existence depends on being experienced by a human or animal subject”.65 If we combine the two dimensions objective-subjective and epistemology-ontology four combinations emerge. Let us give examples of all four possible combinations to make those abstract paragraphs a little more tangible. A statement is called epistemically objective, if it does not depend on anybody’s attitudes, feelings or points of view. The sentence “On July 11, 2007 de Volkskrant contained 38 pages” is epistemically objective, because the amount of pages does not depend on anybody’s attitudes, feelings or points of view. A statement such as: “de Volkskrant is a better newspaper than Trouw,” is epistemically subjective, because the

62 Basic assumptions statement depends on the attitudes, feelings or points of view of the one that has made the statement. However, “Leon said that de Volkskrant is a better newspaper than Trouw”, is epistemically objective because the truth of this statement, the fact that Leon said so, does not depend on the attitudes, feelings or points of view of the one who said that Leon said so. Reality is ontologically subjective if it needs human presence for its existence. Reality is ontologically objective if this is not the case. “In front of me is an object that is made up of liquid crystals and a complex compound of carbon molecules.” This statement is ontologically objective. The moment we call the object a computer screen it is ontologically subjective. The sentence “de Volkskrant is a newspaper,” is ontological subjective, because the fact that de Volkskrant is a newspaper needs an observer to call a pile of paper sheets a newspaper. If nobody calls de Volkskrant a newspaper and nobody acts as if de Volkskrant is a newspaper, e.g. in a remote New Guinea forest where no western man ever set foot, de Volkskrant is no newspaper, but an indistinct object. The consequence of the basic assumption of ‘objective subjectivity’ is twofold. First it makes us realize that a newspaper is a construction of users and designers and that we have to treat our object of study accordingly. Secondly we will not walk into the cunningly concealed trap of epistemic subjectivity, because we know by now that the subjectivity that comes with a construction of social reality does not imply that we are released from an objective epistemic endeavor.

2.2 Social construction theory

Social construction theory is not an established term for a theory or school of thought. It is a phrase we use to label the basic assumption that social reality is a construction. If nobody defines the features of everyday life, the objects, products, situations, there is no social reality. Social reality exists thanks to the fact that people think and talk about it, have words to describe it and use the features that are part of it.66 So, a newspaper derives its meaning thanks to the fact that people think and talk about it and use it. Without their definitions there is no such a thing as a newspaper. Then its meaning is reduced to its physical features. This way of thinking does not have a name. Nevertheless

63 Chapter 2 we need a word to identify this position. ‘Social constructivism’ would be an option, but is used mainly in psychology, is mainly idealistic, has strong postmodern tendencies, as well as a prominent gay and feminist political agenda and uses discourse analysis as a main research method.67 Authors that call themselves constructivists claim that anything is socially constructed. Anything, including fundamental physics. Universal constructivism opens the door to ideas that we must repu- diate as strongly as we can. “There is the notion that any opinion is as good as any other; if so, won’t relativism license anything at all? (…) the next stage (…) might be a book entitled The Social Construction of the Holocaust, a work urging that Nazi extermination camps are exag- gerated and the gas chambers fiction”.68 The social construction idea seems to be such an attractive doctrine lately that it is embraced by the armies of obscurity and predisposed opinions. To distance ourselves from those who believe that anything is a construction we use the phrase “social construction theory” to refer to the view that the notion of construction should be limited to social reality; it is possible to make epistemologically objective statements about an ontologically subjective social reality. At the end of the 1960s Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann with the publication of The Social Construction of Reality wrote the user’s guide to the “social construction paradigm”.69 In three sections they clarified and substantiated their main thesis that was so attractively phrased in the title of their book. In section I - “The foundation of knowledge in everyday life”- the authors elaborate four themes: the reality of everyday life and the social interaction, language and knowledge in everyday life. The core of their reasoning is that everyday life becomes real in the thoughts and actions of men and is therefore intersubjective: the reality is shared with others, most importantly in face-to-face situations. Language is the tool that makes social interaction possible as it objectifies intentions and meaning. In section II – “Society as Objective Reality”- Berger and Luckmann describe how “objective reality” is constructed and why institutionalization and legitimation are the vital instruments of this process. Section III – “society as subjective reality”- poses the question of how individuals internalize objective realities subjectively. Some half century before Berger and Luckmann published their book, W.I. Thomas coined the phrase “definition of the situation”; a

64 Basic assumptions phrase that leads one to suspect that Thomas was thinking along the lines of the construction of social reality before Berger or Luckmann were born.70 In an often cited quote from The Unadjusted Girl, we read: “Preliminary to any self-determined act of behavior there is always a stage of examination and deliberation which we may call the definition of the situation. And actually not only concrete acts are dependent on the definition of the situation, but gradually a whole life-policy and the personality of the individual himself follow from a series of such definitions”.71 The next paragraph is not cited as much but is at least as revealing. “But the child is always born into a group of people among whom all the general types of situations which may arise have already been defined and corresponding rules of conduct developed, and where he has not the slightest chance of making his definitions and following his wishes without interference”.72 Thomas made clear that the process of making definitions is strongly influenced by institutionalization and socialization; two concepts that refer to the phenomenon that in a social system people have the tendency to solve similar social problems in a similar way. He also made it clear that it is possible for an individual to go his, or her own way. Out of the many examples we pick the one about ‘flappers’. We cite Thomas again: “‘Flappers’ are usually girls who believe personality is physical, who consider all advice as abstract, who love continual change, who converse in generalities and who are in many higher institutions of learning”.73 “Formerly”, Thomas wrote in 1923, “the fortunes of the individual were bound up with those of his family and to some degree with those of the community. (…) Individualism on the other hand means the personal schematization of life, - making one’s own definition of the situation and determining one’s own behavior norms”.74 Thomas makes us realize that what is considered to be a typical example of modern times is not so modern after all as he describes expressions of post modern behavior in 1923. As interesting as this observation may be, the point we want to make is that Thomas recognized the basic dilemma of social behavior: the mutual dependency between what is collective and what is individual. In the “Methodological note“ of The Polish Peasant in Europe and America, that he wrote together with Florian Znaniecki in 1918, Thomas introduced two concepts that should solve the problem of this mutual dependency. Those concepts are social value and attitude.

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“By attitude we understand a process of individual consciousness which determines real or possible activity of individuals in the social world.” Thomas and Znaniecki connect the concept of attitude with action. Attitude precedes action. It is the state of mind that sees to an act. “By a social value we understand any datum having an empirical content accessible to the members of some social group and a meaning with regard to which it is or may be an object of activity. (…) The meaning of these values becomes explicit when we take them in connection with human actions”.75 Using words like value and attitude Thomas and Znaniecki confused many a reader, because their meaning of those words differs from common use. Thomas and Znaniecki use the word value for what we call function. The function of an object enables a user to accomplish the results he wants to attain by using the object. “The social value is thus opposed to the natural thing, which has a content but, as a part of nature, has no meaning for human activity, is treated as “valueless”; when the natural thing assumes a meaning, it becomes thereby a social value. The meaning of the foodstuff is its reference to its eventual consumption; that of an instrument, its reference to the work for which it is designed; that of a coin, the possibilities of buying and selling or the pleasures of spending which it involves; that of the piece of poetry, the sentimental and intellectual reactions which it arouses; that of the university, the social activities which it performs; that of the mythical personality, the cult of which it is the object and the actions of which it is supposed to be the author; that of the scientific theory, the possibilities of control of experience by idea or action that it permits”.76 In 1995, 72 years after Thomas and Znaniecki marked their methodological ideas, John Searle wrote his inspiring The Construction of Social Reality. Notice that the title is not the Berger and Luckmann heading The Social Construction of Reality, but The Construction of Social Reality. In Searle’s opinion not all reality is a construction, only social reality. The construction is not exclusively social, although mainly human. This position does not imply the absence of a reality apart from human perception or mental state. Searle is perfectly clear about the fact that according to him there is a reality that is totally independent of us and thus ontologically objective. Those are the features of the world that are intrinsic to nature. But at the same time there are features that exist relative to the intentionality of observers and users and thus ontologically subjective. Searle describes an intrinsic feature of an ob-

66 Basic assumptions ject that’s in front of him. “It has a certain mass and a specific chemical composition, it is partly made of wood, the cells of which are composed of cellulose fibers, and also partly of metal, which is itself composed of metal alloy molecules ”.77 The point is that the description of all these intrinsic features have no meaning in everyday life, whereas the word screwdriver does more than ring a bell. That is because we have learned that the word screwdriver refers to the assigned functions of a screwdriver. Searle makes it clear that a feature of the world that exists independently of us acquires meaning only after people have defined it. The function exists only relative to observers and users, “the makers, designers, owners, buyers, sellers, and anyone else whose intentionality toward the object is such that he or she regard it as a screwdriver”.78 The social meaning of a collection of intrinsic features depends on the construction we make of this reality. The most effective and efficient way to do this is to construct a function. “Cars are for driving; dollars for earning, spending and saving, bathtubs for talking a bath. But once there is no function, no answer to the question, What’s it for? we are left with a harder intellectual task of identifying things in terms of their intrinsic features without reference to our interests, purposes, and goals”.79 Searle uses the concept of function as a tool of what he calls his “taxonomy of facts”, that is his theory of the construction of social reality.80 Searle’s concept of function has little to do with conventional functionalism as it is applied in sociology and anthropology. The founding fathers of functionalism, people such as Radcliff Brown, Malinowski, Merton and Parsons realized that the logic of social behavior does not necessarily correspond with the explanation of the participants. And they realized that consequences of social actions are not always intended. As a result of this revolt against naivety they did not pay much attention to the intended effects of social action. Searle does. The construction of social reality is about intended consequences. “This is because social reality is created by us for our purposes (…)”.81 In conventional functionalism functions have a normative charge that makes empirical research difficult, if not tricky.82 Functions are there to “make for the adaptation and adjustment of a given system.”83 Searle’s concept of function is not normative. The concept of function is a tool, a “first piece of theoretical apparatus”84 constructing social reality. Without the concept of ‘function’ it would not be pos-

67 Chapter 2 sible to start the construction. Searle explains this position by noting the “remarkable capacity that humans and some other animals have to impose functions on objects, both naturally occurring objects and those created especially to perform the assigned functions”.85 And it is the assigned function that gives objects meaning.

2.3 Non rational models

It was already half a century ago that Herbert Simon dispelled the notion of a man who was erroneously pictured as being ‘economic’ as well as ‘rational’.86 This ‘homo economicus’ was assumed to have vast knowledge of the world around him and have skills that enabled him to make the best possible decisions, those decisions that would bring him the most gain. Simon raised great doubts about this “schematized model of economic man” and replaced this basic assumption with a kind of rational behavior that is “compatible with the access to information and the computational capacities that man actually possesses”. He called it bounded rationality. Five decades later, the consumer’s rationality is not even bounded. Most of the time, consumers do not make decisions rationally at all. Even if the consumer has all the relevant knowledge and even the consumer has all the skills for a rational analysis there is no rational assessment of the pros and cons of a product. The question to buy, or not to buy is answered emotionally, based on feelings, sentiments, images. Bounded rationality is not an attack on the very core of rationalism. The advocates of bounded rationality are of the opinion that under ideal circumstances rationality still is the best way to come to a conclusion. The problem is that in the real world the circumstances are never ideal. In the real world people do not know all the facts and seldom have all the necessary skills. According to the partisans of bounded rationality people intend to be rational, but are not capable of being rational; they lack the knowledge, they lack the skills. The rational model is not wrong, but too sophisticated.

Table 7, Epstein 199187 Comparison of the Experiential and Rational system

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Experiential system Rational system More holistic More analytical More emotional-, pleasure- and pain-oriented (what More logical-, reason-oriented (what is sensible) feels good) More associationistic More cost- and effect-analysis More outcome oriented More process oriented Behavior mediated by vibes from past experiences Behavior mediated by conscious appraisal of events Encodes reality in concrete images and metaphors Encodes reality in abstract symbols (words and numbers) Rapid processing- oriented toward immediate action Slower processing-oriented toward delayed action. Relatively slow to change- changes with repetitive Changes relatively rapidly - can change with the speed experience, direct or vicarious of thought Crudely differentiated; broad generalization gradient; More highly differentiated; dimensional thinking. categorical thinking. Crudely integrated - dissociative, organized into More highly integrated emotional complexes (cognitive-affective modules) Experienced passively and proconsciously; we are seized Experienced activity and consciously: as if we are in by our emotions control of our thoughts Self evidently valid; ‘Experiencing is believing’ Requires justification via logic and evidence In the 50 years since Simon started this battle against the monopoly of rationality, a more fundamental critique has arisen in philosophy, psychology and marketing. The partisans of this attack on the ‘rational monopoly’ believe there is no reason to assume that everybody always uses the same model all the time and that every individual always uses the same model all of the time. They replace the ‘rational model’ with one that helps people to come to a conclusion without the use of logical reasoning; without a time- consuming, analytical enterprise that demands particular skills. The alternative is labeled as ‘intuitive’, ‘experiential’, ‘holistic’, ‘affective’, ‘associational’, ‘dual process’, ‘naturalistic’, or with the highly neutral term ‘system I’. “Julie and Mark are brother and sister. They are traveling together in France on summer vacation from college. One night they are staying alone in a cabin near the beach. They decide that it would be interesting if they tried making love. At the very least it would be a new experience for each of them. Julie was already taking birth-control pills, but Mark uses a condom too, just to be safe. They both enjoy making love, but they decide not to do it again. They keep that night as a special secret, which makes them feel even closer to each other. What do you think about that? Was it OK for them to make love?”88

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Most people do not need time to make up their mind. They do not need to reason, they know the answer in a split second. You can hear them saying phrases like: “I don’t know, I can’t explain it. I just know it’s wrong.” Here we have a model of moral judgment that allows a person to know that something is wrong without knowing why.89 The antagonists of the alternative model argue that this intuitive way of decision-making diminishes its quality. Empirical research proves that this is not always the case. On the contrary. In cases of high complexity and uncertainty the intuitive model of decision-making gives even better results than that the rational model. The same is true if there is a serious time pressure. Pilots, surgeons, firemen, military commanders, like the ones who are responsible for a platoon, or a group of tanks, generally use an intuitive model. They have to decide what to do in a split second otherwise the plane crashes, the patient dies, the house burns down, or the soldiers are killed. At this point it is not relevant whether the non-rational model is successful or not. The point here is that an alternative is conceivable. In other words, that it is possible; that coming to a conclusion without knowing why, without reasoning, does happen in the Real World.

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2.4 Pragmatism

If a problem is addressed by a man, let’s call him Arie, who wants to understand why it is a problem and also by a man called Peter who wants to come up with a solution that is acceptable to the parties involved, the outcome will not be the same. This is because they approach the problem from a different angle and they do so because they have both different objectives and different basic assumptions. Arie in this example is homo cognitus, Peter homo agens. The man who wants to know and the man who wants to act. The man who wants to know has a passion for knowledge, he asks himself why things are what they are, why people do what they do, what makes something tick, how does it work. The man who wants to know has a passion for the truth, he puts aside his opinions and looks at social reality with an open mind, which means he asks any question, however awkward or obvious. But he does so with some distrust, as he takes nothing for granted. The one who has a passion for truth accepts any refutation. Peter wants to solve the problem, he wants to control social reality. He wants to know as well, but only if it helps him to solve the problem. So he wants to know what works, what is effective. He wants to know if it enables him to predict the consequences of a thought, an intention, a plan, an opinion. The homo agens and the homo cognitus represent two different ways of looking at the world. The man of action, the pragmatist as he is referred to by James “turns his back resolutely and once for all upon a lot of inveterate habits dear to professional philosophers. He turns away from abstraction and insufficiency, from verbal solutions, from bad a priori reasons, from fixed principles, closed systems, and pretended absolutes and origins. He turns towards concreteness and adequacy, towards facts, towards action and towards power”.90 The man of knowledge looks at praxis and the concrete with disdain. “The depreciation of action, of doing and making has been cultivated by philosophers”, John Dewey wrote in 1929. “But while philosophers have perpetuated the derogation by formulating and justifying it, they did not originate it. They glorified their own office without doubt in placing theory so much above practice. But independently of their attitude, many things conspired to the same effect. Work has been oner- ous, toilsome, associated with a primeval curse. It has been done under

71 Chapter 2 compulsion and the pressure of necessity, while intellectual activity is associated with leisure”.91 Under the heading of pragmatism we subsume a world view that determines the way men handle problems. It is the idea that the concrete, the practice, should not be treated with disdain, but with extraordinary attention since the improvement of practice is the reason behind the quest for knowledge. Again Dewey seems to be passionate about this point. “Many notions of science are abstract, not only because they cannot be understood without a long apprenticeship in the science (which is equally true of technical matters as in the arts), but also because the whole content of their meaning has been framed for the sole purpose of facilitating further knowledge, inquiry, and speculation”.92 If we call Dewey passionate it will be difficult to label Peirce as he answered the question: “What, then, is the raison d’être of the doctrine? What advantage is expected from it? Pragmatist: It will serve to show that almost every proposition of ontological metaphysics is either meaningless glibberish – one word being defined by other words, and they by still others, without any real conception ever being reached – or else is downright absurd; so that all such rubbish being swept away, what will remain of philosophy will be a series of problems capable of investigation by the observational methods of the true sciences – the truth about which can be reached without those interminable misun- derstandings and disputes which have made the highest of the positive sciences a mere amusement for idle intellects, a sort of chess- idle pleasure its purpose, and reading out of a book its method”.93 We don’t associate this choice of words, this tone of voice with the academic community of 1905. Yet that was the year it was written. They show the intense resentment Peirce cherished against abstract academic humbug, and they show a passion for practice as we have also seen in the work of Dewey and James. Of course there is no unified, systematic pragmatic doctrine. If we look at the extensive field of philosophical issues that has been covered by the three founding fathers of American pragmatism it would be a miracle if all those issues were subsumed in a comprehensive theory. And of course any textbook, or monograph will stress the fact that the opinions of Peirce, James and Dewey show more differences than similarities.94 They had a different start, to begin with. Peirce was trained as a chemist, James as a psychologist and Dewey as a philosopher. Peirce

72 Basic assumptions stressed formal logic, James social interaction and Dewey is the most political. The reason they are known in combination is not because of what separates them, but because of what they have in common. The answer is of course their focus on practice and their focus on action. In his lecture on what pragmatism means James was very clear that this focus connected him with Peirce. First he explained that “the pragmatic method is primarily a method of settling metaphysical disputes that otherwise might be interminable. Is the world one or many?--fated or free?--material or spiritual?”.95 According to James the unending disputes over such notions could be settled using the pragmatic method, that is searching for its respective practical consequences. “What difference would it practically make to anyone if this notion rather than that notion were true? If no practical difference whatever can be traced, then the alternatives mean practically the same thing, and all dispute is idle”.96 After this short explanation James told his audience that the term pragmatism was introduced into philosophy by ‘Mr Charles Peirce’. “Mr. Peirce, after pointing out that our beliefs are really rules for action, said that to develop a thought’s meaning, we need only determine what conduct it is fitted to produce: that conduct is for us its sole significance. And the tangible fact at the root of all our thought-distinctions, however subtle, is that there is no one of them so fine as to consist in anything but a possible difference of practice. To attain perfect clearness in our thoughts of an object, then, we need only consider what conceivable effects of a practical kind the object may involve--what sensations we are to expect from it, and what reactions we must prepare. Our conception of these effects, whether immediate or remote, is then for us the whole of our conception of the object, so far as that conception has positive significance at all. This is the principle of Peirce, the principle of pragmatism”.97 James, Dewey and Peirce were all three triggered by practice and the concrete and the three are averse to science for its own sake and abhor being a scientist as a lifestyle.

Chapter 3 Theoretical issues Chapter 3

3.0 Introduction

In this chapter we will address the theoretical issues that are bound to emerge the moment we try to answer the question why some subscribers end their subscription and others do not. The first decision we have to make is about the definition of the newspaper; what exactly is a newspaper? Do we approach the definition by looking at the paper’s characteristics, what a newspaper is, or do we look for what a newspaper does? Secondly we want to make a distinction between the people who know exactly what they want and can put their preferences into words and the people who are not able to do so, their desires, their needs are fuzzy. They know what they want, but they are unable to put that into words themselves. Their needs remain vague. And then there is the issue that somebody is very well able to put his preferences into words, but when the moment arrives that he is going to execute his intentions he does something else. This is known as the weakness of will. We do not want to enter a difficult and time-consuming theoretical discussion about the essence of basic human needs and elaborate on Maslow’s theory on the subject, but we try in this chapter to approach the problem practically. What we want to know is not if a subscriber feels the need for a newspaper, but whether a subscriber will cancel a subscription or not. From a practical point of view we are more interested in the question of newspaper loyalty than in newspaper need. We do not want to exclude certain kind of variables from this study. In the buildup to this study we did. Fortunately we discovered in time that all the variables in the model assumed rational behavior, by which we mean that a decision is made by reasoning. This is not a priori the case. It is conceivable that cancelling, or renewing a subscription is not a rational affair. Variables that measure a non-rational way of decision making must be part of the conceptual model. We explain how we were helped by McDougall’ s recovery of the triad cognitive, affective and conative. We made sure that the variables in the conceptual model will be distributed equally among the triad.

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theoretical is s ues

what is a need for a cognitive affective conative news paper? news paper variables variables variables

brand media price fuzzy preference need primairy habit news paper function time s pent loyalty free papers reading a the news paper weaknes s s ecundairy tradition of will function internet as delivery alternative

a definition that a definition that refers to the overwhelming refers to the tangible news s upply functions attributes of of a news paper, a news paper. what a what a news paper does , news paper is

In this study we want to find out why some people cancel their newspaper subscription and others do not. In order to answer this question we have to take a position on the following disputes: a) About the meaning of the word ‘newspaper’. Are we talking about what a newspaper is or what a newspaper does? The tangible characteristics, the sheets of paper that contain words and images or the functions it fulfills? b) About the need for a newspaper. How to define need? Are we talking about the need for a newspaper or the need for articles and photo’s? Are we talking about the need for articles in general or the need for a specific kind of article? c) About fuzzy need. Not every subscriber is able to articulate his or her newspaper needs. These needs are often vague and fuzzy. Some subscribers only know what they want after they have seen what they can get. d) About weakness of will. The phenomenon that people do not always act according to their own preferences. There are readers who start to read a spicy story about Lady Gaga, instead of an in-depth analysis of Dutch foreign policy although they say they would rather read about politics than entertainment. e) About the description of newspaper content. It is said that there are no words to describe newspaper content. What we have is too

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vague (sport, politics, etc.) or too specific (how do you rate this article?) A taxonomy that makes it possible to describe newspaper content is yet to be developed. f) About how an opinion is made or a decision is taken. In this case, the decision to start or end a subscription. Is this decision rational? Is it the result of time consuming logical reasoning or the result of an affective act that comes about in a split second and is not too concerned about details? Or is the decision-making process a conative affair and is the subscriber focusing on the practical circumstances of the necessary actions that should be taken: Can I afford the paper? Are free papers a reasonable alternative? Is the paper delivered on time? Do I have the time to read a newspaper and does it make sense if you take the overwhelming supply of news into consideration? And how much time do I spend at the moment reading a newspaper?

3.1 The meaning of the word ‘newspaper’

What do people refer to when they mention the word newspaper? For some the question is superfluous because the answer seems so obvious. What else could it be but the newspaper content, the texts and images with the latest news? The articles and photographs are, after all, the very reason the newspaper was made in the first place. But a newspaper is not always used according to the intention of the designer. Some people do not buy a newspaper to read the latest news, but because it gives them the opportunity to show their identity; its possession gives them the chance to prove to be ‘one of us’. For others, having a newspaper is a family tradition. “Where I come from we had a newspaper subscription. Not having one is no option.” A third unintentional reason for buying a newspaper is mere habit. Reading a newspaper is not the result of some kind of reasoning, but because one is used to do so; it is part of the daily routine. The ‘obvious’ answer to the question what a newspaper is would deny the presence of these social, cultural and psychological functions and situations. In 1945, Bernard Berelson interviewed 60 newspaper readers who did not receive their paper because the deliverers were on strike. The main question he wanted to answer was what ‘missing the newspaper’ meant

78 Theoretical issues to them. The answers were not restricted to newspaper content but encompassed “a tool for daily living”, “a vacation from personal cares”, “to increase the reader’s prestige among his fellows”, “to supply guides to the prevailing morality”, or “reading itself”.98 In marketing theory, it is commonplace not to narrow down a product’s definition to its intrinsic features but also to take social, psychological and cultural factors into account.99 Bernd Schmitt’s experiential marketing even rejects functional attributes as reasons for purchase. “In the world in which the brands rule, products are no longer bundles of functional characteristics, but a means to provide and enhance customer experiences ”.100 In media science, James Carey developed a theory with a similar starting point. His ‘ritualist’ approach also excludes functional characteristics as a reason for use. A newspaper is not a means to obtain information but the manifestation of drama.101 Is it the content that makes the newspaper worth paying for? Is the quality of the material, the sustainability of the ink the source of desires; or is the consumer just after sheets of paper because he owns a cat or wants to kill mosquitoes? Maybe the demand for a newspaper is a cry for the social status the possession of the newspaper brings with it. The answer to the question what is exactly in demand is heavily influenced by one’s ontology of social reality.102 We do not have the illusion of covering this problem; not even briefly. The question is obviously a philosophical one and this is not a philosophical treatise and we are not trained philosophers. Having said this, we hurry to make clear that, one way or another, any answer to the question of what a newspaper is presupposes an ontology of social reality. Thus we are of the opinion that at least a brief explanation of what we consider to be our major assumption on this matter is appropriate in all cases.

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3.2 The need for a newspaper.

Everybody who buys a newspaper expects to be more satisfied with it than without it. The very fact of paying money for a paper means that the buyer expects to be better off after the purchase. Before the consumer decides to buy a paper the consumer must be in a state of mind that makes him receptive to the tempting offers of ads and telemarketers. Or maybe his state of mind does not need any external stimulus at all. To phrase it bluntly, the potential buyer must feel more or less deprived. Using the word deprivation does not intend to suggest that the as- pirant buyer will be at the end of his rope if he does not buy a paper. However, one thing is certain, he will never buy a newspaper, let alone take a subscription if he does not feel some kind of deprivation. If he does not experience the absence of a newspaper as a lack, a deficiency. This “state of felt deprivation” is what Philip Kotler calls “need”.103 A customer has a need if he feels the “lack of something requisite, desir- able, or useful”.104 A different way to conceptualize need is to see it as a necessity for survival, as a “physiological or psychological requirement for the well- being of an organism”. This is the way Abraham Maslow deals with the concept of need. He distinguished five stages. First there are the basic physiological needs like air, water, food, shelter, sleep and sex. Safety and security are the second level of basic needs. Then there are what he calls different growth needs like love and belonging, self esteem, meaningfulness, richness, order, simplicity, beauty and justice. The ultimate need is self-actualization.105 We will not follow this psychological line of thought, because we have no intention of answering the question what newspapers can do for human needs. This study is not about the problem of human needs; it is about the buying of newspapers. In the library sciences, there is extensive literature on what is called ‘information need’. The object of the research is not primarily to find out what customers want, but to find out a way to give them what they want. If precise articulation is absent, it is a problem because the lack of accurate desire makes the searching process more difficult. The main problem in the library science literature is the searching process. In library science literature, the audience is active. It looks intentionally for specific information.

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The main problem in the media science literature is the objective of the searching process. The audience of a newspaper is not by definition active, but reacts consciously to the newspaper supply and has preferences in that respect. The information needs of newspaper readers are better understood as content preferences. The process of search is not their main problem, but the search rationale, the reasons they search in the first place. ‘Need’ is one of those words you think you know the meaning of very well until somebody asks for a definition. From that moment on there is a problem because you find out that even the experts disagree about its proper definition. And not only that. They enter a fundamental conceptual discussion that nobody can win, but everybody will lose because it paralyzes any action. In an analysis of literature on medical information systems Kaplan wrote –according to Forsythe et al – that information need has been defined according to the particular interest and expertise of various authors. Some disapproval about this procedure can be detected between the lines. What is wrong in defining a concept according to the particular interest and expertise? As the definition of a concept always depends on the perspective of the one defining, knowledge about the origin of the perspective makes the concept more transparent and raises the value of the definition. The basic line is to assume that the primary reason for a newspaper consumer to buy a newspaper is to be supplied with a specific mix of editorial content such as articles, graphics, photographs about certain topics all presented in a certain way. How much attention should a paper pay to a question such as “what is happening in the world?”, and “how much space should be reserved for entertainment?” These kinds of questions will come up in an attempt to be precise. Unfortunately they are not precise at all. Suppose a local newspaper runs a story about the new pool table that was bought by the community center. And suppose they also publish a background piece that explains why the government wants to change the medical care system. In both cases one could argue the stories are about what is happening in the world. Suppose a reader is asked if she wants to read a background story about the Afghanistan policy of the Washington administration. One assumes the article will explain the logic of the Iraq policy. What the rationale is behind it. Another reader expects the story to be an overview

81 Chapter 3 of what has happened in the past five years. But somebody else shrugs his shoulders and raises his eyebrows to indicate that he does not know if he wants to read the article, but if both articles were presented to him he would prefer reading the first one. For some, the phrase “what is happening in the world” refers to topics like “what is going on in Afghanistan”, for others the sentence points at the marital problems of David Beckham, or the fact that customers can make better digital pictures with a new generation of cell phones. For another group of readers, all of the above must be given a place in their ideal paper as long as it is the correct mix. The examples we have just pictured are all linked to the newspaper content. However this is only one of the possible objects of need. It is conceivable that the need to buy a newspaper has nothing to do with the need to be informed, or entertained, but with the need to feel part of a social group, or category, or the need to have the people around me think I belong to a certain social group or category. It is possible to expand the range of the concept and look at the second and even the third layer of need. The difference between various layers is not their depth, but their level of abstraction. The first level of content need is formulated in terms of its content properties. One has a need for a particular kind of article. For instance: a reconstruction of the cabinet meeting about the Dutch withdrawal from Afghanistan that explains why the prime-minister said what he said during a press conference just after the cabinet had made the decision. In more general terms, a story about a certain subject: Dutch defense policy, written in a certain style: a reconstruction, serving a particular function: elucidation, and approached from a particular perspective: institutional. The second and the third level of need are disconnected from the kind of articles and pictures. The statement: “The need for a newspaper is that it enables me to chat with my colleagues” is disconnected from stories and images. I only know what kind of stories become practically meaningful if I know what kind of stories and images the newspaper must contain in order for me to chat with my colleagues. Chatting with colleagues only acquires a practical meaning if it is formulated in first level terms so that the link to newspaper content is reestablished. We restrict this study to the first level of need.

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3.2.1 Fuzzy need A newspaper need is called fuzzy when the object of desire remains vague, is formulated in abstract, in broad terms. Fuzzy stands in contradiction to specific. Fuzzy needs are needs like ‘interesting’ and ‘surprising’. It is fuzzy, because it does not make clear what topics or story angles are interesting or surprising. Words like ‘interesting’ and ‘surprising’ are fuzzy because they do indicate any characteristic of the object of need. In case of a newspaper article, it does not tell us anything about the article’s tangible characteristics. In the real world people are seldom capable of articulating precisely what it is they need if the object of their desire goes beyond what you can see or hold, like a newspaper. In general terms there is no problem. They can describe very well what they prefer to read globally. “I want to read an interesting article.” Or, “I want to read a well-written article.” The problem arises when they want to be more specific. Articles that are completely different from each other could all be labeled as ‘interesting’. For some readers, an article about politics is interesting while other readers do not consider it interesting at all. For some readers, it is interesting to read an article that explains why something is like it is while other readers consider this boring and prefer an article that touches them emotionally. For some readers, an article that has been written from an institutional perspective is interesting while other readers use the word interesting for an article with a human perspective. Does the media consumer who says he needs “to be informed about what is happening in the world” want to read a story about the war in Afghanistan or the heat wave in New York City? And if he wants to be informed about the war in Iraq what kind of questions would he like to be answered? An overview given by a retired US general about possible military tactics, a story about the way the people of Afghanistan deal with the day-to-day fear of an attack, a story that explains why an 18-year-old girl is willing to blow herself up? If asked, most readers do not have questions like that, because those questions are much too specific for a reader with fuzzy needs. In order to get a clear picture of the readers’ needs we must be able to show the readers what they can get. In order to measure fuzzy needs we need a terminology that enables us to describe needs more precisely. We will develop this terminology and report our findings in the following chapters using the concept of function.

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The fact that social reality is a construction does not mean that the constructions are clear, unambiguous, and precise. On the contrary. Fuzzy, imprecise, ambiguous, and vague constructions are the rule. Perhaps they should not be, but in everyday life they are. The selection of the right word, the correct use of words, and the structure of a sentence, a paragraph, or an argumentation is a fuzzy affair most of the time. According to Donald Levine, “ambiguous modes of expression are rooted in the very nature of language and thought.”106 That is because lexical elements tend to be imprecise, and because the human mind feels compelled to produce constructions such as meta- phor, allegory, pun, irony and paradox. Different cultures and different languages have a difference way of treating ambiguity, Levine asserts. “(…) one type of culture puts a premium on the use of ambiguities in conversation and literary forms generally, while the other type dispar- ages the use of ambiguities at all levels of communication”.107 Concepts should be defined with the utmost rigor. In order to be precise, clear and unambiguous, sentences, paragraphs and arguments should be designed according to strict laws. This is how we should do things with words, but we do not. People do not know the rules that well and if they do, they do not apply them all the time. Their motives are simple: it is too difficult and it is not really necessary to be strict. Vague is good enough, because ‘the other’ fills in what is not clear anyway. If we do things with words it is not the exchange of clarity but it is more of a mutual guessing game. Listener L guesses what speaker S meant when uttering T. L does not mind because it is not necessary for L to know exactly what S meant. Most of the time the same is true for S. S does not mind that he does not know if L knows what he meant when uttering T. S only minds if the intention of uttering T did not have the intended effect on the behavior of L. If L or S do not know if what is said is clear, they can ask. But if L does not react, or reacts in vague or general terms, S will not know that L did not get the message. And if S talks fuzzily, and also thinks fuzzily, S does not know that he is fuzzy because the guessing game prevents S from realizing that he was too vague. If L does not want to fill in what is, strictly speaking, imprecise because he deliberately does not want to understand; the chances that he will win the misunderstanding game are great. Telephone conversation: Leon: “Is Leo home?”

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Leo’s father: “Yes.” [silence, no reaction] Leon: “Could I speak to him?” Leo’s father: “If you can speak, you can also speak to him, yes.” Leon: “I mean now, on the phone” Leo’s father: “Yes, that would be possible on the phone as well.” Leon: “I just want to talk to him on the phone.” Leo’s father: “How interesting. I prefer talking to him face to face.” In a noncommittal setting the chance that a game like this will take place is much smaller than in an organizational setting. In the professional realm, there is a bigger chance that the conversation is between people with different interests. Secondly, there is a bigger chance that the conversation will have consequences for the actions of the addressed. This explains why “a lack of communication” seems to be a universal organizational problem. We believe that language is used on different levels of precision. Some people are very rigorous in their attempt to understand the world they live in. They reflect upon their social actions and those of others and they try to define the situations they are in, as accurately as they can. Others are not so serious. They consume life rather than reflect upon it. They follow the flow and define social reality mainly in fuzzy, if not sloppy, or vague terms. But even the most dedicated stylist has a hard time in being precise. There are too many chances to become fuzzy. “Give me the hardware please.” The request sounds odd. The addressed probably has no clue what should be handed over: a hammer, a screwdriver, a laptop, a screw? In everyday life, the question is probably never asked because the wording is doomed to generate obvious ineffectiveness. Obvious, because if the one who makes the request does not blink, nod, or make any gesture or reference, the one who is asked to give the hardware does not know what to give. The example illustrates that vagueness is at least imprecise, too general. Unfortunately the problem is not that simple. Is the vagueness caused by the features of a word or by the use of a word? Is the vagueness caused by the generality of the word hardware or by the fact that the one who asked the question used the word hardware instead of hammer or screwdriver? The answer is both. The generality of the word hardware causes imprecision, because hardware encompasses a variety of different objects like a hammer, a screwdriver, a laptop, or a screw. Words like media, cutlery, vehicles,

85 Chapter 3 electronics, or houses belong to the same category as they can be specified into words they encompass. Media is the umbrella-term for newspapers, magazines, television, Internet and radio. And if we are asked to wash the cutlery we clean forks, knives and spoons. Besides the characteristics of the word, the use of this particular word or its function, to be more precise, causes confusion. The one who said “Give me the hardware please.” used a word that is too general to fulfill the function he wants it to fulfill. So being vague is the consequence of using a word that does not fulfill the intended result.108 Therefore the utterance does not fulfill the intended function. Vagueness is caused by using a word that does not fulfill the function one wants it to fulfill. In this case, a word that is too general. Next to generality there are at least two other characteristics that can cause confusion or misunderstanding. The first one is ambiguity, the second one is what we call ‘inevitable imprecision’. A word is ambiguous if it has more than one meaning. A word is inevitably imprecise if it has blurred boundaries of application: there is no sharp division between cases in which they clearly apply and cases in which they do not.109 Inevitable imprecision is known in philosophy as ‘the Sorites paradox’. How many grains make a heap? One, two, thousand? When is a man bald? With one hair, two, a thousand? When is a man tall? At 180 centimeters? 190? And when is he middle-aged? When is something red, rich or fat? In philosophy, words that suffer under the Sorites paradox are called intrinsically uncertain, or borderline cases.110 The term ‘borderline case’ refers to the fact that it is impossible to pinpoint the concept’s border. How few hairs are there on a head in order to consider it bald? Intrinsically uncertain refers to the situation that parties involved can never be certain if one hair or more means that the man is bald or not. We use the term ‘inevitable imprecision’ as a specification of a broader concept of vagueness that encompasses both the characteristics of a word and the use of language. As a consequence, we should not exclude the vague use of sentences and arguments. Vagueness, whether it is ambiguous, unclear, or imprecise, can be caused by a word that is intrinsically uncertain, or by using a word that is intrinsically certain but not effective in a specific situation. Vagueness can also be caused by an unclear, ambiguous, imprecise, or fuzzy structure of a sentence, paragraph or argument, or argumentation. In the case of argumentation as a means of resolving a difference of opinion, the condition of logical

86 Theoretical issues and practical consistency must be added to the long list of necessary conditions in order to be clear, precise and unambiguous.111 We want to make it clear in this paragraph how difficult it is to be clear. Very briefly we showed the number of hurdles that had to be jumped on the way to clarity and precision. The reason for this brief inventory is to underpin our proposition that in everyday life it is impossible to live by the rules of being precise, let alone obey them strictly. Two leading scholars in argumentation theory gave a perfect illustration of this point as they made a comment on their own definition of argumentation. “This general definition of the term argumentation differs – because of the use of some technical jargon - from the way in which the meaning of the word ‘argumentation’ would be described in everyday language. (...) the meaning of the technical term argumentation is more precise (…)”.112 To be precise one has to meet conditions that need professional jargon to put them into words. If this is the case, and we believe it to be the case, the majority of the population would not be able to be precise. There is not enough time, motivation and skill. But there is more. We started this paragraph with the assertion that constructions of social reality are not necessarily clear, unambiguous, and precise, but that fuzzy, imprecise, ambiguous, and vague constructions are the rule. In the following argumentation we considered language as the object of the unclarity. It is also possible that the unclarity is connected to the inquiry that precedes the articulation. This is only the case if we can think without using language. Dewey says no, carefully, but nevertheless no. Michael Polyani says yes. Fortunately it is not necessary to enter this dispute, because whatever the conclusion, the original problem of vagueness remains. If it is not possible to think without the use of language then the problems of language are also the problems of thinking. If vagueness is the rule in using language, vagueness must be the rule as we think about the way people think. If it is possible to think without the use of language then how can we know those thoughts are precise if they are not articulated? How can the one that thinks know that his thoughts are precise if he cannot put the thought to a test because that is only possible if the thoughts are put into words? Do not take us wrong. This is not a plea for imprecision. This is not plea for abandoning jargon or for abolishing the ongoing quest for sound argumentation. Our position is that next to normative theories about

87 Chapter 3 sound argumentation and clear usage of words, there is room for theories that see vagueness, ambiguity, imprecision and unsound argumentation as a way of thinking and articulating that happens in the real world. The question is how to deal with this fuzzy reality, or to return to the object of our study, how precise, or how vague are the constructions people make of newspapers as part of social reality? And what is the way out? As we indicated, people play the guessing game. They guess what is meant and they guess what is the right construction.

3.2.2 Weakness of will In the real world you can hear some disbelief about what readers say they read in a newspaper. Readers say, for instance, that the first thing they are going to read in the paper is an in-depth article that answers the question of why American troops have left Iraq. When they say this they believe it is true, it is their intention to read the article about Iraq as soon as they get a hold of the paper but when it comes to it, they start reading an entertaining story that makes them laugh instead. They are not lying when they say that the first article they will read is the one about Iraq. It is just that they do not act according to their own preferences. In common language people say that the heart is stronger than the mind. In academic circles this phenomena is known as the ‘weakness of will’. The rationale is as follows: after deliberate consideration an agent decides to do x, but when the moment arrives, the agent does not do x, but does y. It is impossible to find arguments to justify this action. The agent does not understand why. He has the strong intention to do x, he is able to do x, nothing prevents him from doing x and yet he does not do x. How is this possible? How can the act contradict the intention? A popular way to tackle the problem is to deny that there is one in the first place. R.M. Hare claims that if somebody acts contrary to his professed moral conviction it shows that he did not really have the moral conviction he claimed to have.113 The person in question does y, despite the fact that he believes that he wants to do x, but in fact he does not want to do x, but wants to do y. “It is logically impossible for a man to dissent from what he himself is affirming (though of course he may not be sincere in affirming it).”114 He is not sincere about his real intention. In fact there is no contradiction, there is no weakness of will. Searle does not agree. He writes that the ones who deny the possibility of the weakness of will mix up the intention to act with the actual act.

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Otherwise, we just can wait for the act to happen if the necessary conditions are met. That is obviously not the case. “Making up my mind is not enough; I still have to do it. It is in this gap between intention and action that I find the possibility, indeed the inevitability of at least some cases of weakness of will.” However, the existence of the gap does not answer the question of how it is possible that the two judgments can contradict each other. Searle’s solution is that “I do not have to make another judgment in order to act; I can just act. That is, in this sort of case, I have an intention-in- action with no prior intention and no prior deliberation”.115 There is no contradiction, because in order to contradict you need two statements, but there is only one. The problem with this solution is that some acts can not happen without prior intention. Let us see how this works in the real world. If it is somebody’s intention to read a newspaper that is lying on a table in another room, the following acts are necessary. There could be more acts, and there probably are, but the acts in the following list are at least necessary. Most acts are marked with numbers, some with capital letters. 1) He has to stand up. 2) He has to walk to the room. 3) He has to look for the paper. 4) He has to see the paper on the table 5) He has to walk to the table . 6) He has to pick up the paper. A. He has to scan the paper for interesting articles 7) He has to open the paper. 8) He has to read the headlines. 9) He has to expect what he is going to read after reading a headline. B. He has to compare his expectation with his preferences. C. He decides what to read. The numbered acts are what Searle calls an intention-in-action. They happen without a prior intention. If I want to read a paper and I know it is lying on the table in another room, I do not intend to perform the act of standing up and do not make a conscious intention to perform the act of walking. Those acts are done automatically. If I know the paper I want to read is on the table in another room all the acts that I have to perform in order to get my paper are executed with no prior intention.

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But the moment I hold the paper in my hand several acts are possible. To name two; I can walk to the previous room and put the paper on a small table next to an arm chair on the pile ‘things to read’; or I can walk to the chair in the previous room, sit and scan the paper for articles I want to read. Those acts do not arise automatically. They need a prior intention. I have to decide what to do, how to act. The same is true for B. and C. I sit in my arm-chair, scan the headlines and pick out two articles I intend to read. I expect that the first one will explain why American troops will not leave Iraq and I think that the other is a hilarious column. What will I do? I can compare my expectations with my preferences. Then my conclusion will probably be that I read the article about Iraq. Comparing my expectations with my preferences is a decision based on a rational decision-making model, a method of reasoning that uses the laws of logic and considers the premises used as true. In chapter 2 we argued that it is also possible to come to a conclusion without the use of logical reasoning. As a result, it is conceivable that the intention to read the article about Iraq is made with a different model than the intention to start reading the amusing column. It is conceivable that the first decision – made, let us say with a rational model - comes to the conclusion that the best possible decision is to read the article about Iraq and that the act of reading, the second decision - made, let us say with an affective model – induces the act of reading a column that is expected to be funny. Because the two decisions are made with different models, a contradiction between the two outcomes is not logically impossible. Common sense says that the heart is stronger than the mind. A philosopher calls it the weakness of will.

3.3 The taxonomy of newspaper content

Denis McQuail claims that there is no adequate classification of media texts that can be used in the measuring of audience needs. He noticed that gratification researchers have never been sufficiently interested in the actual content of what they study or, even if interested, unable to incorporate any sensitive measure of content into research.116 Indeed, it is striking that we have not found a terminology that enables an observer to describe the content of newspapers in a way that shows the

90 Theoretical issues preferences of the reader. A terminology like that would be of great use as it would enable the researcher to compare the content preferences with the supply of content. Chapter 5 is entirely dedicated to the development of this taxonomy.

3.4 Individual differences

Consumers are not a homogeneous category. Some people know exactly what they want and are able to articulate their preferences with some kind of precision and make a comparative assessment of newspaper content. Others are guided by tradition, habit, or the need to show their identity. They do not really think about their intentions when buying a paper, let alone make a conscious decision. “We always read a newspaper where I come from.” Or: “Only after the newspaper strike, did I realize that I used to read my newspaper every day after dinner.” And: “I read this paper, because it is what people like me do.” A substantial number of people know what they want after they have seen what they can get. They may be heavily influenced by the newspaper’s brand as they evaluate supply, or they may not be easily swayed by images. So if we want to know what influences the decision to cancel a newspaper subscription, we should not exclude the possibility that the answer differs from one group of subscribers to the other. Next to middle range theories that are restricted to a particular field, contingent theories that “must be designed to fit the situational demands” we acknowledge ‘cluster theories’ that are contingent as well.117 The contingency does not depend on the situation, but on similar behavior, similar motives, needs and preferences. The use of the word demand can give the impression that consumers of newspapers are not a passive crowd, but an active audience. After all, the one with the demand has the intention to change his situation; he wants something that is not yet there; he wants to take action. Demand implies activity. There is no such thing as a passive demand. Demand implies initiative. By using the word demand, we suggest to agree with writers in the uses and gratification tradition. However, this is not the case. First of all we do not believe that there is only one audience. Secondly we do not assume that all audience members know exactly what they want. We do not “postulate a volunta-

91 Chapter 3 ristic and selective orientation by audiences toward the communication process”.118 What we do believe is that as far the question of an active audience is concerned, there are at least three different types of newspaper users: the proactive newspaper reader, the reactive newspaper reader and the opportunistic newspaper reader. The proactive readers know what they want and look for a newspaper that meets their demand. The reactive readers realize what they want after they have seen the supply. The opportunistic reader does not really have a preference and, if there is one, it is vague and it changes all the time. This position has consequences for both newspaper purchase and the execution of research. The first category of users – the proactive readers - know what they want and are able to articulate their preferences. The users that belong to this category scan for example the first section of the newspaper for background about the talk of the day, or they go directly to the sports section to read the report about their favorite team. We come across this type of user much more often among the readers of professional and special interest media. They know what they want better than users of general interest media. The second category of users – the reactive readers - know what they want after they have seen what they can get. They have preferences, but those are not manifest. They have to see something, in order to know if they want it or not. But they do know. Those readers find it difficult to be specific about their preferences, if asked. Interviews with readers of newspapers showed that they had difficulty putting their preferences into words. When asked what they like to read, the answer remained abstract as if they were trying to find shelter behind words that sounded appropriate but did not mean a lot. Words like ‘interesting articles’, ‘high-profiled features’, or ‘exciting stories’. The interviews seem to contribute more to the theory of the audience as passive, manipulated and ideologically controlled by powerful mass media.119 However, this is not the case at all. Once the interviewees had a newspaper in front of them they were very well capable of deciding what they want to read and what not. Studies we conducted in 2006 and 2007 demonstrated that newspaper subscribers read their newspapers very selectively.120 Most of the paper content remains unread but different readers read different stories. To measure what was read, we showed representative online panels of 500 to 1200 newspaper subscribers yesterday’s paper and asked them page

92 Theoretical issues after page to click with their mouse on the articles they had read. The click highlighted the articles and the subscribers were asked if they had read the entire highlighted article, part of it, or just the headlines. We registered the articles that were read, and calculated the reader score and the article score. The reader score shows how many articles readers read entirely and partly. The article score shows how often an article is read. Size taken into account, the average newspaper reader reads between 11 to 14% of the newspaper articles entirely and 7 to 8% partly (reader score). We found an average article score of 16 to 19%; 11 to 14% entirely and 4 to 5 percent partly.121 The figures showed that two-thirds of the articles were read by less than 20% of the readers. No article has a score higher than 40%. Readers read selectively, readers are picky. If those readers were a passive crowd the studies would not show a pattern of variation but one of similarity. The figures show us an audience with a clear, but often dormant demand. The readers had to see what they could get in order to make a selection. They had difficulty in conceptualizing their demand and in articulating it. Their demand was fuzzy, unclear, vague, even ambiguous, or ambivalent. The third category of newspaper users – the opportunistic newspaper readers– have no clue, are indifferent and non-selective. They may pick up a paper if there is one around and they will read an article or two, or scan the headlines and look at some pictures.

3.5 Newspaper layout

Layout is a second feature that may influence the perception of newspaper content. We come to this assumption because Schönbach showed that difference in layout is a better predictor for success than a difference in content.122 We believe that the expectations of a newspaper’s content depend on the intensity, the frequency and variation of the newspaper’s layout elements. If there are relatively many layout elements, with different shapes and a high intensity, people will have a different expectation of that newspaper’s content than if the layout is built up with a few, low-key and similarly shaped elements. In other words the layout of a newspaper influences the perception of the newspaper’s content. If layout

93 Chapter 3 influences the perception of newspaper supply and the perception of supply influences satisfaction with the newspaper, layout influences the satisfaction. The sight of a page installs, within a fraction of a second, a clever program in the heads of newspaper readers. The program tells the readers what to expect. The type of subjects, the kind of story angles. The readers are not aware of this process. They do not read a layout, they read a paper, but without being conscious of the way the text and images are shaped this very shape gives them a clue as to what they will find in the paper. The reader’s expectations are influenced by what they perceive in a split second; the headlines, the images and the way text and images are shaped. Sometimes a reader’s expectations are based on a meticulous assessment of his encounters. But this rational conduct is not the usual way readers behave. It is more likely that readers have an expectation that is not rooted in solid analysis of what is offered but that is triggered by isolated words in the headlines, by the shape of the layout elements, the size of the elements, the number of elements, or the intensity of an element. A page with headlines that use the entire width gives the reader different expectations than if the page contains headlines that do not exceed three columns. A page with 40% text and 60% images creates different expectations than a page with 80% text and 20% images. The layout of NRC Handelsblad promises different content than the layout of De Telegraaf, USA Today or The Mirror. The layout of the Neue Zürcher Zeitung raises different expectations than the layout of Bild, or The Sun. The question is how to convey the content of the expectations. How can we put them into words? Common sense tells us that a paper that prints screaming headlines, large pictures, and uses bright colors lav- ishly will not run a story about the causes of the economic crisis, but will focus more on the Big Scandal, the Big Sorrow or the Big Injustice. Common sense tells us too that a paper with a layout like the The Independent’s will not run large stories about ‘Stardom’ and ‘Royalty’. But what is the rationale behind these differences? What makes a layout different? We believe that the difference can be found in the elements of the design and the way those elements are organized. The layout of a page is structured by what can be referred to as modules, sections, or elements. A layout element is a set of text, or images, or a combination of the two that constitutes an autonomous entity. The

94 Theoretical issues elements are shaped as squares, rectangles, circles or ovals. Elements can be long, or short, narrow, or wide, rectangular or square. Elements are often separated by thin lines. The frequency, variation and intensity of the elements determine the expectations a page raises and the emotions it indulges. We assume that the number of elements on the page has an influence on the expectations of the newspaper content. The variations of the elements depend on differences in length, width and direction. In the Neue Zürcher Zeitung we see little variation between the elements. A long and narrow rectangle dominates. The difference between length and width is a positive number. As a result, the direction of the layout is vertical. In NRC Handelsblad en de Volkskrant, we see more variation. There is no vertical dominance. The elements have some variety of length and width. In De Telegraaf and Het Laatste Nieuws there is more variation. There are more articles and pictures with different shapes, the layout is both vertical and horizontal and there is more variation in the intensity if the elements.

Image 1 Differences in layout of newspapers

A B C

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The difference in layout is described according to three criteria. (1) The frequency of elements. Is the number of elements of a newspaper page relatively high or low? (2) The variation of the elements. Are the elements similar in shape or is there variation? (3) The intensity of the elements. It is high if the designer has made abundant use of images, color, big letters, bold letters and sans serif fonts. We distinguish three classes: In the table below you see a detailed description of the criteria.

Table 9 Differences in Lay-out of newspapers Layout a Layout b Layout c Frequency Frequency Frequency No more than 10 elements on a No more than 15 elements on a More than 15 elements on a broadsheet page and less than five broadsheet page and less than eight broadsheet page and more than eight elements on a tabloid elements on a tabloid elements on a tabloid Variation Variation Variation Some dominance in layout direction. One dominant layout direction. No dominant layout direction. Restraint in the use of squares and Absence of squares and circles. circles but no absence. The horizontal dimensions exceed the No absence of squares and circles. The horizontal dimensions exceed the vertical dimensions vertical dimensions vice versa. vice versa. Intensity Intensity Intensity Images do not exceed 40% of the Images do not exceed 25% of the editorial space Images may exceed 65% of the editorial space No more than 60% color editorial space No more than 40% color Headline space no more than 15% Full color Headline space no more than 10% Headlines have both a sans serif and Headline space may exceed 15% Headlines have a non-sans serif non-sans serif typeface(60/40) Headlines have a sans serif typeface typeface No more than 50% of the headlines Most headlines are bold No more than two headlines are bold are bold Dia positive headlines No dia positive headlines Max 1 dia positive headline Underlined No underlining Max 1 underlining Upper case All lower case Max 1 upper case

3.6 Rationalism in media theory

In media science, the notion that media consumption is influenced by emotional, social or cultural factors that are independent of the immediate media content is increasing.123 McQuail labels the elements of

96 Theoretical issues the model with the triad cognitive, conative and affective: to know, to act and to feel. Kristel Vandenbrande distinguishes two schools of media theories: the mainstream liberal, traditional press theories and the British and American cultural studies. Mainstream theories with a normative attitude towards the function of the newspapers make research obsolete. Why ask the audience about problems, if you already know what they will answer, if you already know what the functions of newspapers are or should be? Reading a newspaper is being a responsible citizen.124 Within this context satisfaction, identity and maintaining a tradition are intentional. The potential newspaper consumer expects that the purchase of a newspaper or a particular newspaper creates satisfaction, enables him to show a particular identity, or contributes to the maintenance of a tradition. The consumer buys a newspaper, or a particular newspaper, because he expects to obtain a gratification. The very possession of the paper may result - in the eyes of the consumer - to something that is not linked to the newspaper content. This argument sounds like Carey’s distinction between a transmission view and a ritual view of communication.125 The transmission view “is defined by terms such as ‘imparting’, ‘sending’, ‘transmitting’, or ‘giv- ing information to others’.” In defining the ritual view Carey combines an enumeration of associations with impressionistic assertions. “In a ritual definition, communication is linked to terms such as ‘sharing’, ‘participation’, ‘association’, fellowship’, and ‘the possession of a common face’ (…) A ritual view is not a model “of information acquisition, though such acquisition occurs, but of dramatic action in which the reader joins a world of contending forces as an observer at a play. (…) news is not information but drama”.126 Note that Carey does not exclude ‘such acquisition’. So he acknowledges the fact that there are people scanning headlines, picking out an article and reading it because it answers an intriguing question. Most theories in media-science assume people act rationally. Mc- Quail noticed this choking dominance of the rational model in most media theories, in particular the Uses and Gratification approach, in a remarkable and important article that was published in 2001.127 Ac- cording to mainstream media theories, media use is the result of a “systematic, logical, sequential, and causally connected” process and media selection is made after carefully and systematically comparing a

97 Chapter 3 meticulously composed list of preferences with an extensive overview of what the market offers. McQuail argues that media behavior is frequently not rational, or planned, but the result of habit, circumstance and emotions.128 In his elegant analysis he does not exclude a rational model as decision- making logic. On the other hand, he does not assume that the rational model is the only model, or even a dominant one. It is possible that different people use different models and it is even conceivable that the same people use different models at different times or in different situations: “at the individual level of choice and media use (…) behavior is frequently not very rational, motivated or planned, but the result of habit, circumstance and chance, as well as being moved by emotions,” 129 writes McQuail using a distinction between a cognitive, affective and conative way of processing information. Hilgard showed that the modern version of this classification of mental activities originated in the German department of psychology in the 18th century, and was adopted by the association of psychologists in Scotland, England and America in the 19th century. Its influence extended into the 20th century through the writings of William McDougall. According to Hilgard, the basic origins of the triad go back to Aristotle and picked up centuries later by philosophers Wolff, Kant and Leibniz and psychologist Alexander Bain. Instead of cognition, affection and conation he uses the labels thought, feeling and volition.130 “I. Feeling, which includes, but is not exhausted by, our pleasures and pains. Emotions, passion, affection, sentiment- are names of Feel- ing. II. Volition, or the Will, embracing the whole of our activity, as directed by our feelings. III. Thought, intellect, or Cognition.”131 The cognitive way is analytical and systematic. The partisans of this model patiently collect all relevant facts. The best possible decision arises when they scrutinize those facts thoroughly, put them in the right order, apply the rules of logic while doing so and make a functional analysis. The affective way of deciding is not analytical but holistic. The advocates of the affective way of decision-making do not dismantle the problem into the parts they can better understand, but they look at it as a whole; they feel instead of analyze. They consider an artifact as a brand. That is to say as a possible experience instead of a bundle

98 Theoretical issues functional benefits. Functional gratification is not the reason for the purchase, but the expectation of having a positive experience. The affective way of decision-making is not the outcome of a process but the result of a sentiment, an affection. I do not say it is the case that affective decision-making is the only rule, but I do not want to exclude beforehand that it is the case, or that it is not. And only if we do not exclude this possibility beforehand can we find out if it makes a contribution to newspaper loyalty. The affective way of decision-making does not encompass the time consuming action of processing facts and opinions, because there are no underlying facts and opinions to process. Therefore the decision is executed in a split second. The decision maker knows what to do without prior deliberation, without prior reasoning. He just knows. For instance because it feels like the right thing to do. The conative way is action oriented. The arguments are about the practical circumstances of ‘doing’. Do I have the time to read a newspaper? Is the newspaper delivered at all? Is the newspaper delivered on time? Do I have the money for a newspaper? The next conceptual model visualizes the variables that could contribute to an explanation of newspaper loyalty. The cognitive or analytical way of processing information uses the concept of function. The next chapter will be dedicated entirely to the elaboration of this point. The affective way is holistic. People that use an affective model do not analyze a problem rationally, they do not slice up a problem into conveniently arranged elements they can understand, but they approach a problem as a whole. They establish an emotional bond with the problem ahead. They do not reason before they buy, but feel before they buy. Driving a Ferrari is first of all an exciting experience not primarily a means of traveling from Rotterdam to Amsterdam. There are people who do not wear a Ralph Lauren shirt because it protects them against the cold but because this is the way to show the world they belong to the Ralph Lauren people. Buying NRC Handelsblad, nrc. next, de Volkskrant, Trouw, De Telegraaf, or no paper at all can be a calculated act that shows the world what kind of reader I am, or because I expect to read a paper with a lot of sports, or a paper with only a few sports items, or any other subject, angle, or approach for that matter.

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Diagram 3 Conceptual model of newspaper loyalty

n e w s pa pe r l o ya l t y

c o g n it iv e a f f e c t iv e c o n a t iv e A N A L Y T IC A L H O L IS T IC C IR C U M S T A N T IA L r a t io n a l e mo t io n a l pr a c t ic a l 1 2 3

F r e e P r ic e D e l iv e r y pa pe r s 3 .1 3 .3 3 .2 F U N C T IO N S ` B R A N D h a bit & T R A D IT IO N 1 .1 2 .1 2 .2 me d ium T ime s pe n t L a c k o f pr e f e r e n c e r e a d in g t ime 3 .4 3 .5 3 .6

l a y o ut 4

3.6.1 Newspaper loyalty Newspaper loyalty is the dependent variable in the conceptional model. The concept of newspaper loyalty that is used here describes the condition of newspaper subscribers that do not even think about the possibility of ending their subscription. Actually the term should be newspaper subscriber loyalty, for it is the newspaper subscriber who can be loyal not the newspaper. Essential for the concept of newspaper loyalty is the continuation of a previous commitment to this newspaper, whether it is a formal business contract or a testimony of love.132 In case of a newspaper subscription, the previous commitments are the decisions to have a particular newspaper delivered every day and pay for the daily purchase in advance.

3.7 The rational model

The core of the conceptual model is the triad cognitive, affective and conative. The various authors that use the triad gave the three concepts different names. The cognitive model is also called the rational model, or the analytical model referring to a way of processing information by reasoning, and using intellectual capacities. The rational model is logical, it encodes reality in abstract symbols, words and numbers and it requires justification via logic and evidence.

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The affective model is also known as the holistic, experiential, emotional or associational model. The affective model is self-evident, “what you experience is what you believe”, it encodes reality in concrete images, metaphors and narratives, it is fast and it is not specific but looks at the overall image. The conative model is either action oriented, practical or circumstantial, or is the reflection of one’s volition. Contemporary psychology will claim that the three concepts are not mutually exclusive and that emotions can be cognitively based, or cognitively induced. Critics could stress too that the three concepts are phases in information processing itself and not separate, but those are empirical questions that are beyond the scope of this research at this point. The research progress does not depend on the answer. Now it must be clear that the three models are a possible way processing information. In that case, variables that are derived from the cognitive, affective or conative models are responsible for newspaper loyalty. Em- pirical research has to reveal if they are and if they are to what extent. If the critics are correct and some variables are not mutually exclusive, analyses of the empirical data not only reveal the mistake but it also correct it as the co-variance between the variables will be great.

3.7.1 The function of a newspaper The concept of function as it is used in this study is strongly influenced by John Searle’s The Construction of Social Reality. Searle takes the position that social reality is observer relative; there is no social reality without someone’s definition. “Social reality is created by us for our purposes and seems as readily intelligible to us as those purposes themselves.(…) Cars are for driving; dollars for earning, spending and saving, bathtubs for talking a bath. But once there is no function, no answer to the question, What’s it for? We are left with a harder intellectual task of identifying things in terms of their intrinsic features without reference to our interests, purposes, and goals”.133 So in everyday life, users of objects that are part of their reality – let’s say newspapers - give meaning to those objects by looking at the contribution those objects can provide to the results they want to accomplish and expect to accomplish. Sometimes they do this very consciously and precisely, sometimes intuitively and vaguely, but always from a pragmatic perspective; their definition of the situation, their way of looking at the object at hand

101 Chapter 3 is inspired by its use, its purpose, its function. So function is the key concept in defining social reality. The most effective and efficient way to describe the meaning of an object is to describe the functions it can serve the user. When we only describe the intrinsic features, and limit ourselves to the physical appearance of the product it is possible that we describe something that looks like the object of desire, but that is not necessarily the object of desire. We want to have a table because we expect a table to make it easier for us to have a meal. We can put a plate on the table, sit at the table and enjoy the food, instead of sitting in a chair with a plate on our lap, awkwardly managing to eat without spilling. The table was designed, created and produced for a purpose the users would like to accomplish. That purpose was not determined by the intrinsic features of a table, but by the ability to bring about eating without spilling the food. It is very possible that a customer is not satisfied with the table although it serves the ‘eating-without-spilling-the food’ function, because that is not the only function the customer wants to be fulfilled. It is important to this customer that apart from the practical function, the table must express the style of the group the customer belongs to. It must be a beautiful table in the eye of the beholder. Customers want to have a car because a car makes it possible to travel from one place to another. So if they buy a car they buy the possibility for transportation. The car contributes to a specific result the owner of the car wants to accomplish. The car serves the transportation function. So why pay a quarter of a million dollars for a Porsche if the function of transportation can be served just as well by a ten thousand dollar Fiat or by public transportation? It is because the owner believes that the Porsche gives the driver a certain prestige, the Fiat does not. A car gives some people a feeling of freedom, while they consider using public transportation as a sign of dependency. The chapters 4 and 5 are entirely dedicated to the concept of function; chapter 4 is about the rationale of the concept, chapter 5 about the application for newspapers.

3.8 The affective model

If someone comes to a conclusion without reasoning, the processing of information does not follow rational lines. This is the case if a news-

102 Theoretical issues paper subscriber keeps his subscription without making a list of pros and cons, without comparing his preferences to what is offered or even without realizing what it means for his identity if he cannot show the neighbors which newspaper he is reading. Instead of all this, the subscriber just keeps his subscription because it feels right to do so. There is no time-consuming analysis, but a rapid decision because thinking takes time, but feeling does not. It is clear by now what the subscriber is not doing when he is processing information in making a decision – reasoning – but it is not clear what he is doing. The non-rational way of decision-making is repetitive, intuitive, associative, or experiential. Repetitive means that a way of behavior that was effective and not unpleasant – not to be confused with pleasant – is copied. The people involved do not ask why they make their decisions; they do not wait for arguments. - Because they were day-dreaming about how it would be if the decision was positive and then lived out the forthcoming experience. This is called branding. - Because they were using the skills that had been necessary to solve similar problems many times before and then acted according to these experiences. This is called intuition. - Because they had been in a similar situation before and they copied the way they had dealt with it. This is called habit. - Because they had been in a similar situation before and generations before them had been as well. As a result, they have learned how to act in this kind of situation. This is called tradition. - Because they have a strong sentiment about the way functions are distributed. This is called preference.

3.8.1 Brand Although it is not a concept that should compete for solid academic consensus, one of the four variables that find shelter under the affective umbrella is the concept of brand. The American Marketing Association defines brand as “a name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers.” Critics claim that this conventional view misses the point, because it only has an eye for functional features and benefits. Those tangible attributes that make your teeth whiter, your shirt cleaner, your face smoother, or your thighs thinner...; this is not the issue, they argue.

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Bernd Schmitt claims that customers want much more than mere functional features and benefits and product quality. Those are a given. What seduces a customer is genuine seduction. They want products that excite them. They want to be aroused by the presentations of those sexy products that touch their hearts and stimulate their minds. They want products that deliver an experience on top of the functions they serve.134 The bond between the customer and the product is not instru- mental but emotional. It is not the result of a business transaction, but of a love affair. According to Marc Gobé, brands are “the partners in the dating dance” and “loving involves a whole lot more than lik- ing”.135 Examining this sentence with a magnifying glass two different arguments appear. The first one is what a brand is: the deeply rooted image that appears the moment a consumer hears the brand name. The second one is what a brand is about: first of all the affective bond between product and consumer, not the preferences, but the love. It is not relevant if research shows that expectations are false and the product does not provide what the consumer thinks he will get. This is like telling someone in love that it is not sensible to be in love. Let’s give some examples. Imagine a Starbucks coffee shop. You smell coffee and you see people having a good time because what they do is what people do who are having a good time in the eyes of the beholder. So some see people laughing and drinking coffee, others see men and women engaged in profound discussion while drinking coffee. Or take JetBlue, the airline that flies beyond the route of transporting people from one place to another. Traveling with JetBlue, you enjoy the cushy leather seats and the fact that you have access to 24 Direct TV channels, like in business class. The ultra-hip design of the terminal gates wear the brand’s particular badge of ‘coolness’.136 And even if there is nobody to talk to, or to laugh with and even if today the coffee does not taste like a symphony, Starbucks still is a concert hall. The picture in your head does not fade because of an experience that does not fit expectations. And if you’re flying JetBlue and there is a delay, and you find out that leg space is more important than leather, you will still consider you economy trip a royal class journey. Brands are stronger than an empirical test. That is if they are strong. This is, if there is a brand. This is because a brand is a strong opinion about a product. The brand tells the consumer what to expect, what the product enables him to experience. The brand tells the consumer what

104 Theoretical issues kind of people use this product. The brand tells the consumer how good the product is. In fact, the brand is the expectation of what the consumer is offered for consumption and at the same time an evaluation of the consumption. The brand does not only describe what you will get, but also how you will feel after you have got it. An evaluation before the fact. Brand does not influence product satisfaction. A strong positive brand is satisfaction. It is not possible that in the case of a strong positive brand the consumer is not satisfied. He is more than satisfied. The satisfaction is deeply rooted. The bond between consumer and product is highly emotional. In the case of a brand, the images and feelings are not idiosyncratic. On the contrary, a brand is only a brand if it is shared by a group of people. One could say that a brand is the institutionalized opinion of a product. The opposite can also be the case. Brand is not necessarily positive. A brand can also tells the consumer how bad product is. For a long period of time the brand ‘Italian cars’ indicates a badly made vehicle: “a car that corroded in the brochure”. Marketing theory already claimed in the 1960’s that product performance does not predict consumer satisfaction but “that satisfaction increases as performance/expectation ratio increases.”137 Performance is strongly influenced by performance expectations. If we expect that this car will never break down, we have the inclination to trivialize the exceptional occasion this car did break down after all, due to cognitive dissonance which is the tendency to twist the facts in order to stick to one’s original position.138 The molding of facts is not necessary in the numerous cases where the consumer is not able to determine if the product does not perform what was promised by the seller. The consumer will never be certain if the gas he pours into his car does what it promises to do. A similar problem occurs in case of newspapers. Readers of newspapers do not base their opinion of the newspaper on content analysis, but on their perception of the content. Yi calls products that are hard to evaluate by a consumer ‘ambitious products’.139 A newspaper is not a car that can break down. The reader’s opinion of newspaper content is entirely based on perception and as perception is strongly influenced by expectations, the reader’s product satisfaction has the tendency to stay positive as expectations stay positive. We suspect a connection between brand loyalty and perception of supply.

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If a reader expects the newspaper to print the kind of articles he wants to read, he will have the tendency to construct social reality according to this expectation. If the newspaper in question is a strong brand, and if a reader likes this brand and subscribes to this paper, there is a big chance that he will remain loyal to his brand even if the newspaper does not perform according to his preferences. For brand loyalty is not determined by an excellent performance of primary function. A strong and attractive brand is not necessarily a question of a perfect technical performance. Is the owner of an Aston Martin satisfied with the precious performance of his elegant machine, or is the satisfaction due to mere esteem? All the examples were about strong and positive brands. A strong brand is not necessarily a positive brand. Newspaper readers have a biased and rough look at supply. Their expectations about what a newspaper will offer are so deeply rooted in their minds that the expectations have been transformed into convictions. Therefore brand is both an expectation and an a priori evaluation. If the brand is strong and positive, the user is not only convinced of what he will get, but knows in advance that he will be satisfied with what the future will bring, even if a comparison between demand and supply shows that he does not get what he wants. In the real world - we assume - newspaper loyalty is not the result of an analytical, logical and empirical comparison, but is the result of a holistic evaluation. If brand image is strong and positive then the consumer remains loyal. An example. The brand NRC Handelsblad is a serious newspaper with solid articles, written from a serious angle that enables the reader to come up with impressive arguments in the discussion with friends. Let us assume that market-research shows that most subscribers of NRC Handelsblad also want to read stories about the private life of celebrities. Even if most of the subscribers like to read this kind of stories it is nevertheless a bad idea to publish a story like that conspicuously, that is on the front page, the opening of page 3, or with a 5 column photograph. If NRC Handelsblad publishes a feature about the private life of a famous actor and accompanies the article with a five column- standing picture, the same people who devour the article would say that NRC Handelsblad should not bring such a story. The point is that if the paper brings a story like this on page one, or with a five-column picture; even if the picture is a work of art, the paper contradicts the brand NRC Handelsblad that says that the newspaper

106 Theoretical issues is a serious institution that should not open its columns to an article about the private life of popular actors. In the eyes of the subscriber this is dumbing down and the perception of dumbing down is something this newspaper should avoid at all cost. The situation is confusing, to say the least. The readers love to read the news about the actor, but they don’t want everybody to know they want to know. Newspaper readers do not undertake empirical research in order to have a grounded opinion about the content of the newspaper; they know. The behavior of newspaper readers is more influenced by their perception of supply than of the actual supply. Some have a clear picture about the content of their newspaper. And this image could be right or wrong. It does not matter, because if their behavior is determined by the discrepancy between demand and supply it is certainly the perception of supply that prevails. Marketing theories claim that the less a consumer is able to determine the product’s quality, in other words the less a consumer is able to determine if the product is fit for use, the more product perception, satisfaction and loyalty are determined by brand image.140 The research elaborates on the distinction originally made by Michael Darby and Edi Karni between search, experience and credence attributes.141 The quality of a product with search attributes can be determined before purchase. The quality of a product with experience attributes can only be established by using it and, in the case of products with credence attributes, it is not possible for a consumer to establish quality objectively. The impact of brand on product loyalty is stronger with credence or experience attributes than with products with search attributes. If product quality is not tangible, the consumers are more susceptible to expectations of product performance that are molded by the images of social and cultural environment stored in their heads than in the case of evident quality.

3.8.2 Newspaper habit and tradition Habit is a recurring act that is triggered by the context that covaries with past performance: a particular place, a particular time, or a particular person. An act that happens out of habit occurs without weighing up the pros and the cons. Habit is part of a daily routine. Wood uses the word automaticity.142 Habit is distinguished from ritual and tradition.

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Habit lacks the symbolic element that is the essential dimension in the concept of ritual. Tradition has a broad time span that includes socialization. Reading a newspaper out of tradition is not the result of a conscious choice either. Where tradition is concerned, there is no need for contemplation as the act of buying a newspaper is self-evident; “it goes without saying”; “I learned it growing up”. At this point we have arrived at the nucleus of the difference between tradition and habit. Tradition is a social and cultural phenomena whereas habit lingers in the personal sphere. Tradition is the result of institutionalization and socialization. It is passed on from one generation to the next. Habit, on the other hand, is a broader concept. An individual can pick up a habit just because he or she gets used to particular behavior. The impact of tradition may differ. Specific groups or categories are, to a greater or lesser degree, more or less influenced by tradition than other groups or categories.

3.9 Conative model

Instead of a cognitive or an affective bond with newspapers, the relationship could be conative. In that case buying or not buying a newspaper is not a matter of serious deliberation or strong sentiments but rather a practical question determined by the circumstances. This conative element is the third element of the triad on which the eclectic conceptual model rests. Apart from the cognitive and the affective rationale there is a rationale of action, a hands-on approach. Do I have access to the newspaper in question? Will the paper be delivered on time? Will it be delivered at all? Can I afford it? Could I get its added value from another product such as the Internet or a paper I can obtain for free? Do I have enough time to read a paper? Again it is the perception of the user that determines the relevance. So if according to the customer, the paper is not delivered on time, it is not delivered on time even if 99% of the time it is. Customers can be convinced of the fact that they can not afford a newspaper even if they spend twice the amount of money on mobile phones. They can be certain that the content of free papers is the same as the content of paid papers even if a systematic comparison shows the opposite.

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3.9.1 Medium preferences If the respondents believe that the functions of a newspaper can be fulfilled by another medium, the two are interchangeable. Believing is the key word in this equation. Believing that this is the case is a necessary condition. If, in the eyes of the subscriber, the Internet is not able to fulfill newspaper functions, the two are not interchangeable even if dozens of arguments show that the Internet can. If, in the eyes of the subscriber, the Internet is able to fulfill newspaper functions then the two are interchangeable even if dozens of arguments show that the Internet cannot. If media are interchangeable - in the eyes of the subscriber- news- paper loyalty is under pressure as alternatives are available. But the technical availability is not equal to the social availability. Some subscribers would not even consider the possibility of reading a newspaper on a tablet. “I want to feel paper”, you hear them say. Other subscribers would not even consider the possibility of subscribing to a printed newspaper. “I don’t read a printed newspaper. My father does.” Reading a newspaper online is a symbol of modernity. Reading a printed newspaper is a symbol of ‘Old School’.

3.9.2 Price Price is important to the reader if money is an issue. If money is scarce, the price of a newspaper makes more difference than if there is money in abundance. Poverty forces the consumer to choose, being very rich does not. It is generally assumed in the publishing world that the price of a newspaper is elastic.143 The price of a newspaper influences the number of papers sold. Whether the price is elastic or inelastic, in both cases price contributes to newspaper loyalty. The question is to what extent and in what direction.

3.9.3 Free papers In the summer of 1999, two free newspapers - Metro and Spits - were introduced in the Netherlands with a circulation of about 500,000. That increased to 750,000 five years later. In the meantime, two new titles were introduced - De Pers and DAG - both of them have already been taken off the market. Now, 2012, the total circulation of all three papers is about 865,000. Immediately after the first free newspaper was introduced, a discussion started whether this initiative would have an influence on the cir-

109 Chapter 3 culation of paid newspapers. The normal way to answer this question was to compare the decline of circulation of paid newspapers with the growth of free papers. But the fact that there is a decline in one and a growth in the other does not mean that there is a causal relationship between the two. It is possible that the readership of free newspapers is independent of the readership of paid newspapers. Nevertheless a relation between the availability of free papers and newspaper loyalty is conceivable and therefore must be included in the set of independent variables.

3.9.4 Delivery In the publishing world it is widely believed that at the end of the day there is only one thing that is important in the decision to continue a subscription or not: whether or not the newspaper is delivered on time every day. Poor delivery as a reason for the cancellation of a subscription, is the dominant assumption. What we want to know is if this assumption is true and, if it is, what its relative importance is.

3.9.5 Time Time spent reading a newspaper can be seen from four different perspectives: the amount of time available, the number of possible activities, to the amount of news supply and to the amount of time that is actually spent. We know from the Social and Cultural Planning bureau (SCP) that free time has decreased since 1995, but the number of possible activities has increased since then. On top of that, the amount of news supply has also increased so we have to process more in less time.144

3.9.6 Overwhelming media supply The increased supply of news can have opposite consequences. One could feel - as can be observed - that ordinary people are bombarded with so many facts that there is no place for a newspaper, because it only contributes more facts to process. They feel drowned in the news. The opposite augmentation is also conceivable. The newspaper serves an important function, because the ‘wise men’ that put the facts into its context (the minister and later the party boss) lost their importance, so the newspaper can fill the gap. The facts do not remain unconnected, but become elements of a greater picture. The newspaper helps us to understand the facts.

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People can use a little help now since the assistance of clergymen and political party bosses has eroded. In the past, difficult decisions were made with the help of the minister or political confident. They put the isolated facts into a meaningful picture. Now that the importance of religion and one-dimensional political ideology have eroded the clergy- man nor the politician play this role anymore. The newspaper could fill this void.

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Chapter 4 The concept of function Chapter 4

the ambiguous concept of function

the application of the concept academic pragmatic the function the function of function function function the function the function for who of a in co tmmunication of an act of objects phenomenon s cience the function Durkheim S earle for what

L asswell B erels on prerequis ites Merton primary and s econdary man-made natural of a function functions Martin & objects objects Wright C opeland s crewdriver the need B urgoon & philos ophy the des igner Willey of an agent B urgoon

L enz & definition P ander Maat of function

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Function is an important, but extremely ambiguous concept. The objective of this chapter is to clarify the way we want to use it. We want to approach the problem from several angles. 1. First there is the empirical angle. We want to sketch a picture of how the concept of function is approached in the science of communication. 2. Secondly there is distinction between the way an observer defines the concept and the way the people involved define it. The way Durheim, or Merton deal with the problem or Searle approach it. We call this distinction the difference between an academic approach, or a pragmatic approach. 3. Thirdly we distinguish three different objects of function: a phenomenon, an act, or an object. 4. In the fourth place we make a distinction between the function for whom or of what. 5. Than there is the distinction that we are free to perform a function, but we are not free in performing a function. We are free to decide is we want to fry an egg, but if we want to fry an egg, we have to break it. This act is necessary, we are not free to skip. We must not forget the distinction between a voluntaristic and a deterministic function. The prerequisites of a function must be fulfilled in order to fulfill that function. We must break an egg in order to fry it.

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The concept of function

4.0 Introduction

It is not easy to describe what content readers prefer. The criteria that are used for a description must show a difference in what a text or image is and what a text or image does. The first difference is about the characteristics of the text or image itself. The second difference is about the consequences the text or image have on the readers after they read the article or seen the image. The editorial content does something with the readers. There is a communicative effect. Whether the difference is between text or image or between the consequences on the reader, one only can prefer one text or image to another if they show a difference. A text e.g. must contain certain characteristics, like answers to the question why it is the case, why it happened or why it works the way it works. Or it contains isolated data or data that are put in a historical and chronological sequence or data that are put in a geographical context, or that describe what will happen as a consequence. In sum the criteria that make up of the texts and images are distributed differently in the eyes of the reader. At the same time the text or image must have a certain effect on the reader. Let us take a tennis match between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and the news that Osama Bin Laden was taken dead, not alive. What do readers prefer to read? A comparison of the two particular items is too specific, for it tells the one who is posing the question nothing more than a readers preference of those two unique articles. To be practical the comparison must be valid for all cases. A common way to solve this problem is to compare areas of interest. But if the comparison is restricted to areas of interest, like sport and politics the outcome will be too general. Does the reader prefer to know the bare facts about the match, or a compelling story about Nadal’s 35th victory in a row? Does the reader want to read a chronological report of the events, or an explanation of why Osama ends up to be dead and Nadal has won the match? All those questions can be answered if the difference is not restricted to text or image, but encompasses the effect on the reader too. Secondly the difference must not be restricted to areas of interest but other characteristics and article effects too. The concept of functions can be very useful solving that problem. The concept of function is the theoretical backbone of the rational model. It is used as our main vehicle in the process to answer the questions we tried to answer. But the concept of function is notoriously

117 Chapter 4 ambiguous and highly controversial. It will be very difficult to find a publication about the concept of ‘function’ that does not underline the fact that we are dealing here with a polyvalent concept. Robert K. Merton, the ‘inventor’ of structural functionalism, is clear about this: “From its very beginning, the functional approach in sociology has been caught up in terminological confusion. Too often, a single term has been used to symbolize different concepts, just as the same concept has been symbolized by different terms ”.145 “What is functionalism?”, Nicholas Timasheff asks. “This is a question which cannot be easily answered because the terms function and functional, in sociology and cultural anthropology, are given different and uncorrelated meanings. Sometimes especially in Sorokin’s work, the term ‘function’ is used in the mathematical sense, connoting a variable the magnitude of which is determined by the magnitude of another. More often, function refers to the contribution made by a part to some whole, to his society or a culture (…) “.146 Sorokin on his part accuses Merton to give the term and its deriva- tives several different meanings, including meanings that he criticizes in other conceptions of functionalism”.147 Nagel is clear about the ambiguity of the term: “The word function is highly ambiguous, and an exhaustive list of its many meanings would be very long”.148 Many authors tried to classify the conceptual chaos. Merton mentions five different meanings: function as a public gathering, an occupation, an official – functionary -, a mathematical notation, a vital process that contributes to the maintenance of an organism. Others came up with similar inventories. 149 Like: The function of a social system. Function as a correlation between two social phenomena. The function as task. The function of an object. The function of a watch. Function as interde- pendence. Functional as anything that operates as it was designed to operate. Functional as a biological and psychological need. Functional analysis in terms of the means-end schema. Functions as the necessary requirements for a system to survive. Function as a contribution to achieve intended objectives. Function as unintended consequences that are observed by a third party. And then of course there is the mathematical definition of function that was first given in 1837 by Peter Dirichlet. “If a variable y is so related to a variable x that whenever a numerical value is assigned to x, there is a rule according to which a unique value of y is determined,

118 The concept of function then y is said to be a function of the independent variable x”.150 The common notation of this definition is y = f(x). In plain language: whenever x changes, y will change accordingly. In the 19th century there wasn’t really a consensus about the mathematical definition of function but in comparison to sociology, anthropology and the media sciences sheer harmony prevailed. In the g-disciplines the differences are numerous. Sometimes they are subtle, sometimes the gap is enormous and sometimes the meaning of function is not explained at all. Next to the conceptual swamp there is the debate about the value of the concept of function. The discussion is dormant at the moment and the intensity has little to do with the way scholars exchanged ideas in the golden days of functionalism but the fact remains that there were doubts, and disagreement. Rex has his doubts as to the promises of functionalism. “The needs of the system cannot be so decisively demonstrated as functionalism supposes, because of the difficulty of demonstrating that any activity is vital for the systems survival”.151 Kingsley Davis, a manifest opponent, talks about the myth of functionalism.152 The function of this chapter is it not to give a review of functionalism, that would be a task far beyond our ability, but merely to see to it that the reader [of this study] knows how we intend to use the concept of function and why we choose to do so. An effective way to illuminate the different meanings of a word is to look at its use. So we start with examples of different applications of the concept of function applied to mass media in general and newspapers in particular. After that we will sketch two fundamentally different ways of looking at the concept of function: the pragmatic and the academic perspective. In explaining the pragmatic perspective we use the work of the philosopher John Searle.153 And we will illustrate the academic perspective in view of sociologists Emile Durkheim and Robert Merton.154 From there we draw a conceptual schema of function. Based on this overview of options we choose our perspective, define function and explain why we defined it as we did. We start with some examples of functional analysis in mass communication, preferably newspapers.

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4.1 Lasswell

In 1948 Harold D. Lasswell wrote a 15 page article that influenced generations of mass communication scholars.155 He started with the observation that the convenient way to describe an act of communication is to answer the question: “Who says what in which channel to whom with what effect”.156 According to Lasswell all the elements of this question refer to a subdivision of the field of communications research such as control analysis, content analysis, media analysis, audience analysis, and effect analysis. Lasswell wrote that he was not interested in dividing up the act of communication, but wants to examine the entire social process within a functional frame of reference. He distinguished three functions: (1) the surveillance of the environment. (2) the correlations of the parts of society in responding to the environment. (3) the transmission of the social heritage from one generation to the next.157 Lasswell did not define function, but he did make a reference to biology suggesting that the three functions he distinguished have a biological equivalence. “The single celled organism or the many-membered group tends to maintain an internal equilibrium and to respond to changes in the environment in a way that maintains this equilibrium”.158 Lasswell is concerned and afraid that anti-democratic forces will un- dermine the freedom of the West. His article is not based on original or even secondary empirical research. It is more a political statement than a specimen of academic endeavor.

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4.2 Berelson

In 1945 Bernard Berelson interviewed 60 newspaper readers who did not get their paper, because the deliverers were on strike. Berelson wanted to know what “missing the newspaper” meant to them? Do they really miss the parts they claim, to the extent they claim? Why do they miss one part as against another? The kind of answers Berelson was looking for were not restricted to newspapers content but encompassed variables as “a tool for daily living”, “a vacation from personal care”, “to increase the reader’s prestige among his fellows”, “to supply guides to the prevailing morality”, or “reading itself”.159 After analyzing the intensive interviews Berelson constructed a typology of five roles, or functions of the newspaper. 1. Information about and interpretation of public affairs. This is a “core of readers who find the newspaper indispensable as a source of information about the ‘serious’ world of public affairs.” Here Berelson emphasizes the fact that the reader’s preference is not limited to the bare facts, it also extends to content that enables the reader to understand why the events occur. “… I like to analyze for myself why things do happen …”, a newspaper reader said.160 2. A tool for daily living. The second group of readers missed the newspaper because they used it as direct aid in everyday life. Some respondents said that not getting the newspaper left them with the feeling of being handicapped. Half of the respondents had the feeling that there were some things they could not do as well. They lacked the newspaper’s aid. 3. Respite. According to Berelson reading has respite whenever it provides a vacation from personal care. The newspaper helps the reader to escape the day-to-day routine. Berelson calls it the escape function.161 4. Social prestige. Another group of readers seems to use the newspaper because it enables them to appear informed in social gather- ings.162 5. Social contact. “The newspaper’s human interest stories, personal advice column, gossip column and the like provide readers with more than relief from their own cares and routine”.163

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4.3 Wright

A decade and two years later Charles R. Wright repeated Lasswell’s job more systematically.164 His rationale is clearly sociological, and his sociology fits the functionalism of Robert K. Merton. Wright mentions four. On top of the list is the process of mass communication itself. At this level the basic question is to ask “what are the consequences - for the individual, subgroups, social or cultural systems - of a form of communication that addresses itself to large, heterogeneous, anonymous audiences publicly and rapidly, utilizing a complex and expensive formal organization for this purpose?” Referring to Timasheff, Wright noticed that this approach is “unman- ageable empirically”, so that functional analysis at this level “appears currently to be dependent primarily on speculation, and holds little immediate promise for the development of an empirically verifiable theory of mass communication”.165 The second kind of questions focuses on the means of communication. Wright refers here both to Malcolm Willey’s study of newspaper functions and Janowitz’s study of the role of the local community press. The first study distinguishes the functions the newspaper fulfills for the readers (news, editorial, background, entertainment, advertising and encyclopedic166), the second study focuses on the social consequences.167 Wright made it clear that a functional approach can be used in the institutional analysis of mass media organization as is the case in a study by Breed of the mechanisms that determine the logic of the newsroom. Finally Wright arrives at the point where he wants to be: the “promising development” of a comprehensive theory of mass communication. For his main objective is to make a contribution to theory construction. In the second section of the article Wright sketches a functional inventory for mass communication. Following Merton he distinguishes between consequences and the motives for an activity. Objectives that are intended are called manifest functions, those that are unintended, latent functions. Effects which are undesirable from the point of view of the welfare of the society or its members are called ‘dysfunctions’. Wright summarizes his inventory into a “stylized formula” that he put into the following question: “What are the manifest and latent functions and dysfunctions of mass communicated surveillance (news), correlation (editorial activity), cultural transmission, entertainment for the

122 The concept of function society, subgroups, individual [and] cultural systems”.168 According to Wright the elements “can be transformed into categories in a master inventory chart which organizes many of the hypothesized and empirically discovered effects of mass communication”.169

4.4 Martin & Copeland

Martin and Copeland’s study (2003) is an example of the casual and general use of the word function. Sometimes it is synonymous with ‘meaning’, (“the function of …”, means the same as “the meaning of ...”) sometimes it refers to the unintended consequences of an institution. The book is a collection of articles that sketches the history of newspapers in various parts of the world: the Arab, African and Asian cultures as well as the cultures of the Pacific rim, Europe and the Americas. The main objective of the book is “to give the reader an opportunity to look across cultural uses of newspapers so that the larger view of the functions they serve can be assessed”.170 We can read that in Arab cultures newspapers were used by colonial powers to set the governmental agenda, until local writers and publishers were in control and the newspapers became vehicles for national identity building. In several African nations the newspaper was used as a weapon against totalitarian regimes or was a vehicle on the road to a better social order. In the Pacific Rim countries the newspaper was not an agent of change, but a go-between. And in some eastern Asian countries the newspapers served both as a government agent and purveyor of new ideas, cultural educator, and voice of the people.171 In none of the articles the concept of function is defined. What is meant by the word has to be derived from the way it is used. All the articles are about the function of newspapers as an object, an artifact. In some cases the object is gradually transformed into a newspaper as an institution. In all the articles society is the subject of the function. It is about the function of the newspaper for society. And in all articles the function is not intended. There is no designer.

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4.5 Burgoon & Burgoon

More than 20 years after Lasswell wrote his influential essay, Judee Burgoon and Michael Burgoon published The Functions of the Daily Newspaper.172 In the very first paragraph they declared “the approach taken is essentially functional, in that it is assumed that people ac- tively used the media to satisfy needs rather than allowing the media to dictate the terms of their use”.173 Their objective is to assist newspaper personnel in making better content related decisions. In order to do so they consider it to be effective to identify the newspaper’s importance as an agent of information, influence, entertainment and diversion. According to Burgoon and Burgoon this identification would explain why certain topics and stories are more widely read and this knowledge would help newspaper personnel to decide how to treat major content areas. They conducted five telephone surveys that resulted in 3702 completes. The questionnaire was “constructed to represent an extension and application of two typologies of mass media functions: 1) Wright’s sociological-functional interpretation of the media, which postulated that the media served the functions of surveillance, correlation, entertainment and cultural transmission (or socialization) and 2) Blumer and Brown’s typology, which consists of diversion (including escape from routine problems and emotional release), personal relationships and personal identity”.174 The authors did not define function and they did not explain the rationale behind the questions in the questionnaire that was intended to measure function.

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Table 8 The functions of the daily newspaper, questionnaire 1 To get immediate knowledge of big news events 2 To get full and details of big news events 3 To give you the day’s headlines ✓ 4 To get analysis of news events, explanations why things happened as they did 5 To help share your own opinions 6 To explain how important events and issues relate to you and your community 7 To keep you informed about what is happening in your local community 8 To explain how important events and issues relate to you and your community ✓ 9 To get helpful information, such as household and tax information or consumer advice 10 To uncover wrongdoings, scandals, potential problems – i.e., to act as a watchdog 11 To repeat news you’ve read or heard elsewhere 12 To give you more information on things you’ve seen, such as movies, sports events or accidents ✓ 13 For entertainment 14 To get interesting or fun usual stories you can repeat to others 15 To fill time ✓ 16 For relaxation 17 To give you a knowledge of people and places you couldn’t experience personally 18 To keep from having to carry on a conversation From J. K. Burgoon and M. Burgoon,175

Table 8 gives an overview of the 18 questions in the questionnaire. The answers to four questions (marked with an ✓) show the preferred reasoning structure. Function is there defined as a particular reasoning. An article that shows “why things happened as they did,” has a structure that differs from an article that contains “helpful information, such as household and tax information or consumer advice”. An article that is for entertainment, or relaxation has a different structure than an article with “explanations why things happened as they did.” The possible answers to questions 4,9,13 and 16 have a direct consequence for the way articles are written or photo’s are made. For the remaining 12 questions this is not the case. The answer to question one: “To get immediate knowledge of big news events” does not give any information of how an article that fulfills that function is written, or photo is made. Not even the subject, for what are big news events? What are the day’s headlines? What are important events? What news have you heard, or read before?

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4.6 Willey

Willey formulates functions that are directly connected to the newspaper content. “People want news, they want comment, they want entertainment through the printed page, they want general information, they want information concerning the availability of goods and services: the newspaper meets these needs. All of this seems obvious and elemen- tary, and yet it is the failure to recognize these simple analysis that, as already stated, leads to the confusion in much of the discussion about newspapers (…)”.176 Willey’s approach differs substantially from earlier studies. In this short paper he developed a taxonomy of newspaper content in functional terms. 1. News function: bringing to the reader a fresh account of contemporary happenings; the dissemination of information concerning timely events. 2. Editorial function: commenting upon events and happenings, and the fashioning of opinions with respect to the contemporary world. 3. Backgrounding function: providing of supplementary or enriching information in terms of which the news events may be understood better. 4. Entertainment function: providing miscellaneous materials in a wide variety of forms, designed for the entertainment of the reader. 5. Advertising function: serving as a sales medium. 6. Encyclopedic function: providing miscellaneous non-news materials for general instruction or inflammation of readers.177

4.7 Lentz & Pander Maat

Since the end of the 1980’s the language department of the Utrecht University took a great interest in the functions of text. The initiative resulted in a research program that gave functional text analysis a big boost. In 1991 Leo Lentz formulated a methodic description of text functions that he elaborated in a study about the evaluation of advisory texts together with Henk Pander Maat two years later. In this study the authors developed a method for the evaluation of advisory texts, particularly about subsidies. They want to differentiate between good and bad texts. The concept of function is their point of departure. They claim that every evaluation should start with the question what func-

126 The concept of function tions the text should fulfill. In other words what must be the effect the text should have on the knowledge, attitudes and intentions of the readers.178 They have two objectives. The first objective is to find out what is the appropriate function. This is a voluntaristic enterprise; the answers are in the hands of the beholders, for at the end of the day the readers determine what functions they prefer. Their second objective is to find out what distinguishes a good text from a bad text. This is a deterministic enterprise; the answers are in the hands of experts. The function of the method is to determine if a text enables a user to achieve the intended function. It is not about determining the function, but about determining the functional prerequisites: what are the necessary conditions of a text in order to have the intended communicative effect? In this study Lentz and Pander Maat elaborated on the concept of communicative effect in terms of Austen’s trichotomy locution, illocution and perlocution. Since Austin distinguished the three concepts there has been a debate about its meaning. As we understand it, a locutionary act refers to the talking, an illocutionary act sees to it that the intended meaning comes across, and a perlocutionary act changes the addressed behavior in one way or another. It is defendable to argue that there is no difference between a locution and illocution - as Searle did - and that there is no difference between illocution and perlocution as it is argued by Gaines.179 The fact is that Austin was not sure himself. The editor of the lectures Austin delivered at Harvard added an interesting footnote: “[Here occurs in the manuscript a note made in 1958 which says: “(1) All this is not clear (2) and in all senses relevant ((A) and (B) as distinct from (C)) won’t all utterances be performative?”]”.180 Some ten years later – in 2004 - Lentz and Pander Maat defined communicative effect without Austins terminology. “Every communicative effort can be directed at three kinds of effects: • A cognitive change in the mental stage of the reader, who learns something or forms a particular attitude. • A change in the reader’s behavior such as handling a machine or buying a product. • A change in social reality as a result of the collective behavior of readers should such as sale of a product.”181 According to Lentz and Pander Maat evaluators of campaigns should focus on all three effects, whereas document evaluators should con-

127 Chapter 4 centrate on communicative effects only. Lentz and Pander Maat make a distinction between six kinds of communicative effects as is shown in the next table.

Table 10 Six kinds of communicative effects Label intended cognitive effect example Informative factual knowledge (knowing that…) news-report Supporting assessment knowledge needed to make an assessment test report (being able to decide) Instructive knowledge about actions (knowing what to do software manual and how) Persuasive attitudes (believing that…, evaluating x as…) political pamphlet Motivational intentions (intend to..., be willing to…) advertisement Affective feelings (for example, feeling concerned, letter of apology amused, offended) Lentz and Pander Maat (2004) p. 389 There is another fundamental difference in their approach from ten years ago. Lentz and Pander Maat used the concept of function for the design of documents.182 The documents are still persuasive texts, produced for the government, or other institutions that want to influence a target group. But they are looking at documents from a totally different angle. Instead of evaluating they are designing. This change of perspective increased the attention for the reader. They gave the example of patients suffering from AIDS. If they know “how to correctly administer Drug Y, resulting in an effective use of the drug, so that the number of people with AIDS is reduced.” The chance that the intended cognitive change will take place increases if the designer asked the following question: “What should the reader know to be able to use this drug in the right way?” Lentz and Pander Maat use the answer to design a proper layout for the instruction, the answer helps designers to formulate the functional prerequisites, the conditions that are necessary in order to fulfill the intended function. Pander Maat developed a slightly different list with three function in common - informative, instructive and persuasive - and two different one’s: directive and expressive.183 In order to link functions with a text or image, Pander Maat uses the idea of the imaginary question. It would be ideal if the functions provoke a question that objectives in a contextual expression, in a text, or a picture, or in any other means of

128 The concept of function transmission. A designer, in case of newspaper the journalist, is not really helped with the kind of functions Pander Maat distinguishes. It does not give enough leads to what kind of imaginary question the readers would like to be answered. Labeling a function ‘informative’ function is too big a tag. Most newspaper content could be classified as informative. A different set of functions, we believe, could be practical. We will elaborate this point extensively in the next chapter.

4.8 Pragmatic and academic functions The way Willey and Pander Maat use function is fundamentally different from the way the concept is used by the other authors. Lass- well’s functions of “the communication process in society” as there are “surveillance of the environment, correlation of the components of society in making a response to the environment and transmission of the social inheritance”, have little to do with the news, editorial, background, entertainment, advertising and encyclopedic functions Willey distinguishes. The object of Lasswell’s functions is the communication process in society, whereas Willey focuses on the function of newspaper content. Lasswell’s functions have no designer, nobody’s designing the communication process of society. Willey’s functions are designed, intentionally. Lasswell, Wright, Burgoon & Burgoon and also Martin & Copeland seem to have a different objective than Willey who wants to know what functions newspaper readers prefer and Pander Maat and Lentz who want an instrument that enables them to evaluate text. They both have pragmatic objectives. They want to know in order to act. Lasswell, Wright, Burgoon & Burgoon and Martin & Copeland want to know, and in some cases want to build a comprehensive theory. In spite of the numerous distinctions and idiosyncrasies there are at least two approaches in the thinking about functions: the Pragmatic and the Academic Approach. We mean by approach a set of common assumptions that determines the way problems are selected, framed and solved. The Pragmatic Approach starts with a real-world problem and uses the concept of function to contribute to its solution. The pragmatic approach is action oriented, the pragmatist wants to change or control reality. The pragmatic approach enables the practitioner to intervene in real-life situations. The academic approach starts with an academic

129 Chapter 4 problem. An academic problem is generated by the inhabitants of academia. An academic problem is often a problem about method. We use the word academic and not scientific or theoretical, because a pragmatic approach can be scientific, or theoretical as well, a pragmatic approach does not exclude a scientific method or theory. Theories of practice help the practitioner to make decisions in real life situations, in practice.184 The word ‘academic’ is used to emphasize a position which is both independent, and detached. The people who live in the real world define social reality as they live. Their day to day construction of social reality is social reality. In the laboratory, in academia, the construction of social reality is an academic construction, set up by the academic agenda. The pragmatic approach wants to reflect about action in the real world. The academic approach does not consider practice or practical problems as its muse. They want to explain why things happened the way they did. The academic approach focuses on the effects of media on society, or the influence from society on the media. The pragmatic approach wants to know if actions are effective. Pragmatic functionalism is not reflective in the sense that it wants to reflect on social systems and social action. It does not try to point at the integrating and disintegrating force of social phenomena. Prag- matic functionalism limits its scope to specific actors. In our case a designer, producer and a user, a manufacturer and its client, a journalist and his audience. Pragmatic functionalism tries to understand how the producer can make a product that serves a function that a client wants to be fulfilled. This idea calls for a lot of misunderstanding. Serv- ing a function that a consumer wants to consume doesn’t mean that consumers dictate what will be offered. Very often consumers cannot formulate what they want without seeing what they can get. They have preferences, but those preferences only become manifest in confronta- tion. Serving a function, consumers want to be fulfilled implies that the designer knows what kind of consumers he is aiming for and then uses his expertise to answer questions that are both relevant and consumers oriented. Academic functionalism considers the function of social phenomenon for the adaptation and adjustment of a given system.185 So the function of newspapers is to serve democracy or to maintain the status quo.

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Pragmatic functionalism assigns a function to the use of a tangible object. Pragmatic functionalism describes the function this object serves the user. Pragmatic functionalism relates functions to the interaction of producers and users of artefacts, man-made objects. Pragmatic functionalism is action oriented. It looks at the interaction from both the perspective of producers and users. Designers formulate the function they want to fulfill for specific users and in order to do so they will ask themselves what kind of contributions they can and want to make to the result their users would like to achieve. They will not intentionally serve functions that are not in their interest. So they will ask themselves if they have enough relevant resources to make the intended contribution and they will ask themselves if the price they can ask for their contribution is high enough. The users decide if the presented artefact contributes to the result they expect to achieve from the use of it. During this process of decision- making they have a more or less specific image of their needs. So defined the concept of function integrates demand and supply, vice versa. Because the selection of an artefact is both determined by need as well as by the tangible supply of what can serve that need. In this way the supply of an artefact may inspire a potential user of using as long as he perceives the artefacts’ contribution as positive. Pragmatic functionalism contains the conceptional framework that makes it possible to understand the complicated relationship between the producer and the user of a product, or as it is in our case between a journalist and his readers. Pragmatic functionalism tries to solve the problem of taking into account the fuzzy need of a reader. It is not about explaining social phenomena but about the search for functions that can be transformed text or images and activities that may influence readers’ perception. The journalist who wants his articles to be read asks himself what possible function the article may fulfill, what result his readers would like to achieve and what contribution he can make in order to realize that result. The contribution could be an article in which the journalist answers the question why Israel attacks Hezbollah in Lebanon because he presumes that his readers would like to know why Israel attacks Hezbollah in Lebanon. This articulated desire could have been present before the reader picked up the newspaper, or could be a fuzzy latent need that became manifest by reading the headline of the article. As we see pragmatic functionalism is action oriented. It integrates the expertise

131 Chapter 4 of the journalist with the manifest or latent needs of the media consumer. Pragmatic functionalism tries to discover functions the readers would like to be fulfilled.

4.9 John Searle and Emile Durkheim

The academic and the pragmatic approach of function can be traced back to the social ontology of John Searle and the sociology of Emile Durkheim. Their opposite conceptions of social reality as well as their rules and methods of social study explain the difference, we believe.

4.9.1 John Searle Searle developed a theory that considers social reality as a human construction. Social reality is observer relative and therefore ontologically subjective. It is there because people consider it to be there. Natural reality is observer independent. It is there even if nobody knows it is there. It is ontologically objective. According to Searle the distinction between observer independent and observer relative facts is, “absolutely fundamental”.186 Despite the fact that social reality is ontologically subjective it could be epistemologically objective. In that case its features are not a matter of people’s preferences, evaluations, or moral attitudes. Even if everybody has the opinion that this shouldn’t be the case it is a fact that there is snow on the Mount Everest, and that the artifact in front of you is made of paper. But the fact that this is a newspaper is only true, because people consider this to be a newspaper. Without observers it is no newspaper but just a pile of paper sheets. How is this possible, Searle asks himself. “How can there be an objective reality that exists in part by human agreement?” Searle already revealed the answer in the title of this book: The Construction of Social Reality.187 People construct social reality to serve their purposes, they make cars so that the user of those cars can move from one place to another, they make a newspaper so that the user of the newspaper is enabled to know, why President Bush entered Iraq. The fact that people construct social reality is of course subjective. So again, how can there be an objective reality that exists in part by human agreement? The question is raised because of the highly ambiguous use of the terms objective and subjective. The distinction between ontology

132 The concept of function and epistemology is rarely made. Nevertheless this distinction is the key to the answer. “I am in pain”. “This is wrong”. “This is ugly”. “This is beautiful”. “This is bad”, are epistemologically subjective statements. But the statement “John said he is in pain”, “John said this is wrong”. “John said this is ugly”, are epistemologically objective statements. The fact that John said so is not a matter of the preferences, evaluations or moral attitudes of the person who said that John had said so. So ontological subjectivity can go hand-in-hand epistemological objectivity. As people construct social reality, social reality is ontological subjective, but it is an epistemological objective fact that the subjective ontological fact is a subjective ontological fact. To explain how people construct social reality three concepts are crucial: the assignment of function, the process of institutionalization and collective intentionality. “(…) humans and some other animals have to impose functions on objects, both nationally occurring objects and those created especially to perform the assigned functions”, Searle argues. (…) “In the case of some artifacts, we build the object to serve the function. Chairs, bathtubs and computers are obvious examples. In the case of many naturally occurring objects, such as rivers and trees, we assign a function. We say, “that river is good to swim in,” or “this type of tree can be used for lumber”. “The important thing to see and this point is that functions are never intrinsic to the physics of any phenomenon but are assigned from outside by conscious observers and users. Functions, in short are never intrinsic but are always observer relative”.188 This means that they are assigned relative to the interests of users and observers. If people construct their own social reality at least two problems arise: is everybody capable to engage in these highly creative act of constructing social reality? And if everybody makes his own reality how can we be social?

4.10 Institutionalization

Institutionalization attacks both problems. Searle is not always clear about the way he defines institutions and institutionalization. Most of the time he uses the word institution as a body of authority, to possess rules and regulations. Institutional facts are facts that a body of authority had legitimized. Institution is the codification of human agreement.

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Sometimes Searle uses the concept of institution in a broader sense and is institution not linked to a body of authority, but considered as common interpretation. We follow Anton Zijderveld’s approach. Institutionalization is the process which transforms social action into normative patterns of behavior.189 Patterns of behavior not only imply social behavior, they also help people to construct their social reality. Institutionalization is the process which transforms social action into normative patterns of behavior. This definition expresses what we believe is the essence of Zijderveld’s approach to the problem. “The extended definition charac- terizes the process as fundamental and anthropological. The normative patterns of behavior are habits, mores and institutions that can exist independent of acting individuals. The patterns are both constraining, integrating and securing.”190 As a consequence institutionalization builds culture. It teaches the newcomers, the young and the outsiders how to solve problems ‘our way’.191 The idea to define culture “as the way we solve problems” is Schein’s. He applied his theory to organizational culture, but its rationale does not depend on the type of group it refers to. This process of institutionalization starts with habitualization, a pattern of actions that emerges as people repeat the same behavior in similar situations. This repetition makes it unnecessary to define similar situations from scratch. Habitualization provides standard solutions for similar problems.”192 By repeating a pattern of conduct, by solving a recurring problem the same way as before, by performing the same action in a similar situation, the action becomes a habit. And if the habit is not a personal creation, but a collective act, if the habit is not just a personal invention but a joint effort, if the habit is learned or inspired from a former generation, habitualization becomes institutionalization, habits become institutions, and some of them become institutes. We have to distinguish between the two – institute and institution – carefully. Any normative pattern of behavior is an institution. In case of an institute the pattern is more or less formalized. The institution of mating becomes the institute of marriage, the institution of religion becomes the institute of the church. Institutions can develop into administrative arrangements and even legal contacts as is the case with marriage, church, traffic and money. The concept of institutionalization encompasses different manifesta- tions. On one side of the continuum we notice a normative behavior

134 The concept of function pattern with a limited scope and no formal sanctions. On the very other side of the continuum the norms are written down and the sanctions can result in detention and even in death. In between there are administrative arrangements and patterns of behavior that are under severe social control. From this perspective institutionalization is a process that controls the behavior of individuals. Without being aware most of the time individuals behave according to the conventional wisdom of the social system they belong to. If they don’t act as is expected, social conflicts and negative social sanctions will probably fall to their lot. It sees to it that similar questions are answered ‘the proper’ way and that similar problems are also solved in the way “we solve those problems.” If an outsider questions the traditional solutions the group will smile and ask the outsider rhetorically: “You are not from here, are you?” Looked at it from this perspective institutionalization is a conserving process, its logic, its rationale, its function is constraint.193 In the late 60’s and the early 70’s the Revolt of the Younger Generation was very much focused on what was called the worn out institutes and institutions that had to be broken down. There is another way of looking at the function of institutionalization. In this view the instrument of constraint goes hand in hand with an instrument of security and support. The process of institutionalization helps individuals to make decisions in everyday life. According to this view institutions are also more or less standardized solutions from re-occurring problems. They are the ready-to-use constructions of reality that preserve people from a difficult and possible frustrating task to make a construction themselves. “This frees the individual from the burden of ‘all those decisions’ providing a psychological relief (...)”, wrote Berger and Luckmann at the end of the 1960’s.194 Since then the abundance of choice did not increase the sense of freedom, but resulted in ‘the paradox of choice’. The old institutions that helped us to narrow the options vanished, the new ones did not reach maturity yet. There is so much to choose from, but we don’t know how to choose.195 Individuals need institutions to narrows down the range of choice to one, or two. It helps them to construct social reality.196 We learned that if we want to achieve a particular function there is a good chance a particular object will do the job. So if we want to drill a screw into a wooden board we grab for a screwdriver, not for a spoon, not even for a coin that possibly will enable us to drive the screw.

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We have learned right from childhood that if we want to be informed about what is happening in the world we need a newspaper. Because newspapers serve that particular function. Problems arise if new technologies emerge and ‘old’ institutions become obsolete, or dysfunctional and new solutions attack the dominance of the old school. In the beginning of this transformation the designers of products that use the new technology have difficulty to abandon the traditional definitions. In the transitional phase ineffec- tive copy cat behavior seems to be unavoidable. An example: in The Netherlands it was common to have an intermission when you went to see a movie. So in the early days of Dutch television, at nine o’clock the viewers read ‘intermission’ on their tiny screens. The first newspaper and magazine websites were copies of the paper issues The designers didn’t create functions based on the technological possibilities of the new medium and the possible preferences of the users. Instead they copy the institutionalized functions of another medium, the one they knew: print.

4.10.1 Words In this short paragraph we try to make the point that language narrows the options defining social reality because language is the main vehicle for institutionalization. Here we have a paradox. The clear use of language is so demanding that being vague is the rule. At the same time the way concepts are defined in everyday life helps the individual to make constructions of reality. Berger and Luckmann emphasized the importance of language in the construction of social reality, particularly in the process of institutionalization and as a consequence the processes of primary and secondary socialization. Words are used as maps constructing social reality. Their meaning leads the way. Words also typify experiences, and classifies recurring events and situations, and gives preconceived meaning to objects, natural, or man made.197 Primary and secondary socialization are the relevant techniques. Primary socialization teaches children what are common reality constructions. It helps them to define what the world is about. “It is language that must be internalized above all. With language, and by means of it, various motivational and interpretative schemes are internalized as institutionally defined (…) primary socialization ends, but is never completed. It ends when the child becomes a member of society, but is

136 The concept of function never completed, because new situations ask for new definitions and new constructions. (...) Secondary socialization is the main mechanism that helps the member of society to make more specific constructions. It is the internalization of institutional or institution-based ‘subworlds’. It requires the acquisition of role specific vocabularies, which means, for one thing, the internalization of semantic fields structuring routine interpretations and conduct within an institutional area ”.198 Collective intentionality is the third tool that people can use constructing social reality. It encompasses cooperative behavior, believes, desires and intentions, that can be both singular and collective. “I am a violinist in an orchestra I play my part in our performance of the symphony”.199

4.11 Emile Durkheim

The academic approach considers social reality as an autonomous entity, it exists independent from human construction. The academic approach denies the possibility of being objective about a constructed social reality. Contrary to Searle’s position the academic approach does not make the distinction between observer independent and observe relative facts. In other words it does not make the distinction between the epistemic and ontological subjectivity and objectivity. As a result, the academic approach could not think of the idea that the subjective social reality can be studied objectively. “La première règle et la plus fondamentale est de considérer les faits sociaux comme des choses.” This famous line is of course Emile Durkheim’s. It is the first sentence of the second chapter of Les règles de la méthode sociologique, specially laid out as an outstanding paragraph, in order to get maximum attention. Because he exhibits no understanding of the distinctions that were absolutely fundamental according to Searle and because he was so eager to be scientific, to be objective, Durkheim could not think of the idea to treat a subjective fact objectively.200 To give two other illustrations: « Il nous fait donc considérer les phénomènes sociaux en eux-mêmes, détachés des sujets conscientes qui se les représentent ; il faut les étudier du dehors comme des choses extérieures; car c’est en cette qualité qu’il se présente à nous. Si cette extériorité n’est qu’apparente, l’illusion se dissipera à mesure que la science avancera et l’on verra

137 Chapter 4 pour ainsi dire, le dehors rentrer dans le dedans. Mais la solution ne peut être préjugée (…) ».201 « Quand donc on entreprend d’expliquer un phénomène social, il faut rechercher séparément la cause efficiente qui le produit et la fonction qu’il remplit. Nous nous servons du mot de fonction de préférence à celui de fin ou de but, précisément parce que les phénomènes sociaux n’existent génialement pas en vue des résultats utiles qu’il produisent. Ce qu’il faut déterminer celle-ci il la correspondance entre le fait est considéré et les besoins généraux de l’organisme social et en quoi consiste cette correspondance sans se préoccuper de savoir si elle est a été intentionnelle ou non. Toutes ces questions dès intentions sont, d’ailleurs, trop subjective pour pouvoir être traitées scientifiquement».202 Durkheim makes it perfectly clear that social reality exists on its own, independent of people, independent of their definition. According to Durkheim social reality is ontological objective. This position determines his view of sociology and social sciences. The social scientist should discover the laws of social reality without being concerned about the question whether this reality is intentional or not. He claims that all those questions about intentions are obviously too subjective to treat them scientifically. Twenty years later Durkheim repeated his position in a series of 20 lecturers on American pragmatism. The 10th lecture is about the construction of reality and the construction of the truth. And again Durkheim is afraid that the human constructed reality could very well be an illusion. Durkheim equals the truth with a one-dimensional concept of objectivity, without making a distinction between objectivity within the realm of epistemology and ontology. « Le monde, le réel, nous dit-il, est construit par la pensée de l’homme. Soit! Mais, pour pouvoir dire que les deux processus n’en font qu’un, il faudrait qu’on pût dire aussi que cette construction du réel est vraie par le seul fait qu’elle existe. Or une telle affirmation est dépourvue de sens: cette construction est un fait, elle est. Dire qu’elle est v raie pose un tout autre problème. Percevoir ou construire la vérité n’implique pas nécessairement que cette perception ou cette construction ne soit pas illusoire »203 In a remarkable comment Neil Gross asserts that Durkheim already thought what Searle wrote in The Construction of Social Reality a hundred years ago.204 “I think Gross protests, perhaps too much and I want to protest equally on the opposite side”, Searle replied. That was after he had a closer look at Durkheim’s work and came to the conclusion that

138 The concept of function the “situation with Durkheim is much worse than I originally thought. His conception of social ontology is not only inconsistent with mine, but it is flawed in ways I did not originally realize”.205 Then he listed a dozen central concepts and presuppositions that he considers the backbone of The Construction of Social Reality and subsequent works, like a distinction between observer-relative and observer-independent phenomena, the distinction between the epistemic and the ontological sense of the subjective-objective distinction, collective intentionality and the assignment of function and the consequent observer relatively half functions. How many of these do we find in Durkheim?, Searle asks. “As far as I can tell, exactly none”.206 This is why we connected Durkheim’s thinking to the academic approach. If social reality is a construction, the only way to study social reality objectively is to describe and understand social reality as the people who are part of that social reality construct it. As soon as social scientists make a construction that is not derived from the construction that has been made by participants the construction it is an academic construction. Conventional functionalists observe a social phenomenon, like religion, marriage or mass media and then try to establish the contribution it makes to the continuity of society. There objective is an academic one. They prosper in the realm of knowledge. Their passion is to discover the hidden mechanisms that explain the integrating and disintegrating forces of society. In order to do so they want to reveal the functions and dysfunctions of what they consider to be important social phenomena. This concept of function “involves the standpoint of the observer, not necessarily that of the participant.”207 Functions are “those observed consequences which make for the adaptation and adjustment of a given system”208, they are “the contribution which a partial activity makes to the total activity of which it is a part”, “the contribution it makes to the maintenance of the structural continuity”209, or “mechanisms which account for the functioning of social systems”.210 We call this an outside view of social reality, because the observers are not part of the reality they describe. Because of their perspective as outsiders they can discover the tacit patterns and hidden mechanisms they consider relevant

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4.12 The process of defining function

Table 11 below helps us to define the concept of function. It is a conceptual schema as it arranges the concept systematically. The first criterion of classification is the distinction between academic and pragmatic function. The second criterion is the distinction between the function for and the function of.211 The third criterion is the necessary function or functional prerequisites.

4.13 The functions of objects

In most cases the object and subject coincides with the intended, or unintended character of the function. As we will see the functions of objects and action are always intended. Those of phenomena and institutions are always unintended. The functions for users and designers are always intended, the functions for social systems are unintended. Functions can be fulfilled by an object, the action of an agent, phenomena or institutions. We have to distinguish natural object, from man-made ones. Rivers, trees, stones and mountains are natural objects. They can be used to perform a function ascribed by man, but they are not designed and manufactured to do so. Somebody got the idea to use a river as an infrastructure for transportation, or a stone as a paperweight, possibly even as a murder weapon. The main difference between natural and man-made objects is the presence, or the absence of intention materialized by a designer. Nobody designed and produced a river, a tree, or a mountain, there is no designer. Whereas man-made objects only exists if the object was designed and manufactured. Functions that are connected to a natural object perform that function because a user decided to use the object to perform that function. The only party involved is the user who con- structs the function. He sees a nice smooth stone, e.g., and uses it as a paperweight. The next table is an elucidation of the way we define function. First there is the division between the functions that are intended and that are not. The intended functions are defined from all those involved, the designers and the users. The unintended functions are a construction

140 The concept of function made by a third party, the observers that place themselves outside the realm of the people involved. We start with the intended functions. A distinction is made between the subject of the function - who decides about the objectives the designer, or the user - and the object of the function – whether it is an object in the narrow sense of the word, such as an artifact, like a car a newspaper, or a violin, (1.2.1) or an action; in that case the function is not enabled by a static object, but by a dynamic sequence of actions. We are than talking about consultancy and teaching. In the table the distinction is labeled as the function of and the function for. It is necessary to separate man-made objects from non man-made objects. Searle mentions the distinction casually, but does not give it much further attention.212 Man-made objects are designed and created in order to perform one or more intended functions. All products whether they are detergents, speedboats, or newspapers belong to this category. Natural objects exist independent of human involvement. Trees, flowers, stones and rivers belong to this category. Whether an object is man-made or not has great consequences for the process of function assignment. In case of man-made objects the function of an object is assigned by two positions: the designer and the user. It is obvious that there is no human designer in the case of natural objects, and only the user assigns functions. People use objects because the object fulfills a function they want to be fulfilled. The object enables them to achieve what they want to achieve. They know beforehand what they want to achieve using the object. In this case the demand is clear, which means that the user is able to articulate his demand. We want to have a table because we expect a table to make it easier for us having a meal. We can put a plate on the table, sit at the table and enjoy the food, instead of hanging in a chair with a plate on our lap, awkwardly managing to eat without spoiling. The table is designed, created and produced for a purpose the users would like to achieve. Its intrinsic features cannot only define that purpose. Somebody who intended to contribute to the ‘eating-without- spoiling-the-food’ function designed this table. Man-made objects are designed with the intention to serve a function. Objects are used, or bought because of the particular function they enable.

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Table 11 intended unintended pragmatic function academic function function for user function for designer system prim sec function of function of phenomenon natural 1.1 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.1.3 3.1 object 3 1 institution Man made 1.2 1.2.1 1.2.2 1.2.3 4.1 4 Action natural natural 2.1 2.1.1 2.1.2 2.1.3 5.1.1 2 object 5.1 5 Man made Man made 2.2 2.2.1 2.2.2 2.2.3 5.2.1 5.2 functional prerequisites necessary functions

Some people want to have a car because a car makes it possible to travel from one place to another. Buying a car is buying the opportunity of transportation. The car enables the driver to realize a result he wants to achieve. The car serves the transportation function. Why pay a quarter million dollars for a Porsche if the function of transportation can be served as well by a ten thousand dollar Fiat or by public transportation? It could be motivated by the fact that the Porsche gives the owner a certain prestige, the Fiat does not, neither does the bus, or the underground. A car gives some people rightly, or wrongly a feeling of freedom, while they consider rightly, or wrongly using public transportation as a sign of dependency. If the concept of function is banned by a dictatorial decree it will be extremely difficult to explain the meaning of products like car, computer, paper tissue or aeroplane to an ancient Egyptian or a Borneo head-hunter. In everyday life users of objects that are part of their reality – let’s say newspapers - give meaning to those objects by asking themselves how those objects enable them to achieve the objectives they want to achieve. Sometimes they do this very consciously and precisely, sometimes intuitive and vague, but always from a pragmatic perspective; their definition of the situation, their way of looking at the object at hand is inspired by its use, its purpose, its function. Function is not only a key concept in defining social reality it is also an effective and efficient way to describe the meaning of an object.213 Some objects fulfill functions autonomously. In car plants long lanes

142 The concept of function of machines produce car parts. Each machine fulfills a specific function, alone, by itself. Of course those machines are man-made. Man designed them and constructed them, and before they can perform their functions man have to tell them in detail what to do. People type instructions, switch switches and press buttons. After everything is installed and enabled the robots fulfill the intended functions until a malfunction calls for human intervention. In case of the functions that are intended we have to distinguish between natural objects (1.1) and natural actions (2.1) on one hand and man-made objects (1.2) such as trees, rivers, cars and violins (objects in the narrow sense) and man made actions (2.2) e.g. mountain climbing as a sport, consultancy and teaching on the other. Natural objects and natural actions do not have a designer. Trees and rivers are there; men climb, it is a natural act. A user decides one day to assign a function to a tree, a river, or she feels like climbing the Mount Everest, because she thinks or feels that it is a good idea to use the tree as a stake out, (the surveillance function) to use the river as a leisure resort (the recreational function) and to use men’s ability to climb mountains for a sport.

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Table 12 intended unintended pragmatic function academic function

function for user function for designer system prim sec function of function of natural tree horse jump phenomenon rain dance river fiat object mr brown man made car newspaper mosquito isaac institution marriage violin stradi- killer stern varius natural natural action bart vos mutual help climbing object desert workflow man made man made workshop team consult mckinsey computer individualization jack building teaching brown jr. functional prerequisites necessary functions

Natural objects and actions do not have a primary function, because there is no designer (2.1.1) and for the distinction between a primary and secondary function (1.1.2, 1.1.3, 2.1.2 and 2.1.3) the presence of a designer is crucial. The primary function enables the user to achieve objectives that are wanted by the user and intended by the designer. In the case of natural objects and actions there is no designer; people use what is already there. There is a hedge, or a tree trunk and people assign to this natural object the ‘cross country–jump function’. (1.1.3) In case of the man made object the famous example of a secondary function is the ‘mosquito killing function’ of a newspaper (2.1.3) and in case of man made action there is e.g. the team building function (2.2.3) of a workshop on workflow (2.2.2), that had an instructive primary function. Next to the intended functions - what we call pragmatic functions - are the functions that are not intended. We call them academic functions because the function is put into words by an observer of society, an outsider that watches the world and notices that events are more than the participants say they are. The men are not dancing in order to get rain, but because the dancing together generates a feeling of mutual

144 The concept of function understanding, the dancing is the Hopi way of adapting and adjusting their society.214 Again we distinguish between the functions for and the functions of. ‘Functions of’ are phenomena (3) such as the rain dance at the Hopi Indians (3.1), or institutions (4) such as the institution of marriage (4.1) and objects (5) such as computers (5.2) that cause individualization, (5.2.1), or a desert (5.1) that generates a system of mutual help. (5.1.1)

4.14 The functions of an object

Robots are objects that fulfill functions by itself, but most objects need to be used to fulfill its function. A word processor does not process words when it is not used as such. A person who wants to process words must decide to use the artifact and assign the word-processing function to it. The possession of a word-processor does not imply that any user could process a splendid novel. Having a word-processor does not imply that the writing-a-best-selling-novel-function will be fulfilled. The function of an object sees to it that a user of this object achieves the intended result. A car needs a driver, a newspaper a reader, and rivers need a skipper and a ship to perform its transportation function. In this respect Searle uses the word agentive function. Not everybody can use an object appropriately, not every agent is able to achieve the desired function, let alone in an impeccable way. A violin needs a user who knows to use the instrument. Not every user is able to fulfill the intended function. Not even on the best violin money can buy. Most objects need an agent to fulfill its function. Hammers do not drill nails into a wooden board by itself. The person who holds the hammer sees to it that it does. A screwdriver does not drive screws if it is not twisted around, and even if the twisting-around-function is taken over by an electric device we need an agent to hold the machine in order to fulfill the functions. Having a snowboard does not imply that the carving-passionately- from-the-mountain-function will be fulfilled. If the possessor does not know how to make nice round carves fulfillment deprives. Having a newspaper does not imply that the knowing-what-is-going- on-function will be fulfilled until the possessor of the newspaper reads the article that fulfills its function. The function of an object enables the user of this object to attain the intended result. The function of an

145 Chapter 4 object sees to it that a user of this object achieves the intended result. A car needs a driver, a newspaper a reader, and rivers need a skipper and a ship to perform its transportation function. In this respect Searle uses the word agentive function.

4.15 The designer

In the creation of man-made objects, products, artefacts the role of the designer is paramount. If the designer of an object does not take the functions into account users want to fulfill and the users do not come up with functions that were not intended by the designer, the object would not be used. A particular design may result in objects users do not want because they do not want the functions the product fulfills. The presence of a designer has great implications. First of all the designer starts the process of designing by formulating the objectives he thinks users want to achieve in using a product and not by using the object for his own benefit. So in case of man-made products the designer puts himself into the position of the user and asks himself what use would benefit a user. In the Real World this first step can take years of intensive research, or can be done in a few minutes on the basis of professional experience depending the scope of the function. It will take years to answer the question if people want an object that fulfills the functions of hydrogen cars, cd-i’s215, dvd’s or mp3’s. The question what function a newspaper article has to fulfill should take no more than a few minutes of professional experience, otherwise the writer would not meet the deadline.216 It is not necessary that the designer uses his audience as his muse. It is possible that he is not public oriented. It is possible he has a message, a dream even. In that case the designer does not use all his empathy to discover latent needs of his audience, no, the designer wants the audience to be aware what he wants them to be aware of. The second step in the design process is to formulate a list of what we call ‘functional requisites’. Functional requisites are the necessary conditions an object has to meet in order to fulfill the intended function. The more specific the intended functions, the longer the list of functional requisites. The first step requires a mix of technical and marketing expertise, the second step demands mainly professional, or technical knowledge, depending the intended functions.

146 The concept of function

The third step is to manufacture the object that is designed to fulfill the intended functions. It is possible that this process is not performed correctly. In that case there is a chance that the object will not perform the intended function, despite the fact that the function of the object is still the function that should be fulfilled. A malfunction can be caused by a production failure, not by a failure of design.217 The fourth step is the users assignment of functions to the man- made object. Users can assign functions to the man-made object that correspond with the intention of the designer. A user can also assign function to the man-made object that are not intended by the designer. The intention of the designer was to enable a user to drill a screw into a wooden boar. But it is conceivable that a user prefers to drill the iron bar of the screwdriver into the chest of a man, which was definitely not the intended, but unfortunately the assigned function. Or to give a less violent example: a user can use a newspaper to be informed about world affairs, which corresponds with the function the editorial staff intended to fulfill, or he can use the paper to articulate his social position, a function that was not intended by the journalist but assigned by the user. First of all the designer must be aware and take into consideration that he needs the participation if not cooperation of the agent. This implies that (a) the agent must recognize the fact that the object enables him to fulfill the function the designer intended and that (b) the agent wants the intended function to be fulfilled and that (c) the agent is capable of using the object in such a way that the functions can be fulfilled. As a consequence the designer must know whether the agent wants to use the object for the fulfillment of the function he wants it to fulfill and the designer must know whether the agent is capable of using the object. We must embrace therefore the suggestion that the instruction of agents becomes part of the design of technical artifacts.218 In case of the natural object there is only step four: the assignment of a function by a user to a natural object.

4.16 Screwdriver philosophy

Screwdriver philosophy is one of the rare publications that focuses on Searle’s concept of function. According to Peter Kroes Searle does

147 Chapter 4 not provide a satisfactory answer to the question: “When is an object a screwdriver?”219 There are at least two ways to read the question: when do we call an object a screwdriver is one, what are the necessary conditions for an object in order to enable a user to drill screws into a wooden board is two. In fact we can see now that the words we use for man-made objects are the institutionalization of both the function the object fulfills and the object we expect them to fulfill those functions. People who never heard of the word screwdriver and never saw a screwdriver in their lives were taught the word screwdriver by showing them the object and explaining them what the object enables them to do: and it enables a user to drill a screw into a wooden board. The function is not that it drills screws into wooden boards. In order to function as a screwdriver a user has to use it as a screwdriver. Since the invention of the screwdriver people learned that an object that is made up of a metal pin with a flat point and a wooden or plastic hilt we call a screwdriver and they learned that what we call a screwdriver serves the function that it enables people to drive screws. “Objects may have the appropriate physical properties which allow them to be used as and thus to function as screwdrivers, without really being screwdrivers”, as Searle himself remarks in a footnote.220 Searle is right. “You could not define ‘screwdriver’ as ‘anything that can be used as a screwdriver,’ because lots of things can be used as screwdrivers that definitely are not screwdrivers, for instance, coins”.221 In everyday speech we certainly do not call a coin a screwdriver. But if we need to drill a screw into a wooden board but lack a screwdriver, and somebody shows the others that a coin has the same function, which means that a user is able to achieve the same objectives as with a screwdriver. A coin is a functional alternative for a screwdriver. Kroes argues that according to Searle it is a necessary condition for something to be a screwdriver that it seems to be a screwdriver. But what is a sufficient condition for something to be a screwdriver, Kroes asks? The answer is not that complicated. An object is a screwdriver if it appears to have the physical features that belong to a screwdriver. In plain language: if it looks like a screwdriver it probably is a screwdriver. Even an object that looks like a screwdriver but does not enable a user to drive screws is still called a screwdriver. So a screwdriver is still called a screwdriver even if it doesn’t fulfill the function a screwdriver is

148 The concept of function intended to fulfill. On the other hand we don’t call a coin a screwdriver, even if it can fulfill the function a screwdriver is intended to fulfill. Next to the linguistic question there is a technical one. In that case the question is not about the man-made object screwdriver but about the relation between the intended functions that are laid down in the design, the object that a man has made and the actual capacity of achieving the intended function. So here we need to know the functional requisites of an object so that it enables a user to drill a screw into a wooden board? In other words: what conditions are necessary and sufficient to enable a user to drill a screw into wooden board? Kroes doesn’t make an explicit difference between the assigned functions of a screwdriver and the necessary functions, the functional prerequisites of an object to function as a screwdriver. The ontological question what is a screwdriver shouldn’t be confused with the linguistic definition of a screwdriver or with the institutionalization of driving screws. In the course of time it became self-evident to use a certain object - that we start to call a screwdriver- if we want to fulfill the function of driving screws into board. So if we want to describe the function of object X we shouldn’t start with the question what makes X an X, but with the question what enables the user of X to achieve Z using X. Kroes argues that although the functional property of the screwdriver in question may be ontologically subjective (because assigned and thus not intrinsic), it is epistemologically objective. The question is what object is epistemologically objective? We believe that Kroes is betting on the wrong horse. “...we do not have any metaphysical doubts about whether or not this is really a screwdriver, or this is really a car, because the sheer physical features of the objects in question enable them to function as screwdrivers or cars”.222 The answer to the question if an object is a screwdriver is epistemological objective if we make a statement about its ontological subjective state. “de Volkskrant is a better newspaper than Trouw”, is epistemologically subjective, but ”According to Leon de Volkskrant is a better newspaper than Trouw”, is epistemologically objective. The physical features of the screwdriver are only relevant for calling it screwdriver if they correspond with the image of screwdriver.

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Image 2 Screwdriver

It would be a nice experiment to show a group of people two pictures: one is a picture of a rubber screwdriver that looks like a normal hardware screwdriver, the second one is an instrument that doesn’t look like a screwdriver as we know it, but fulfills the functions of the screwdriver in an impeccable fashion. We ask the group to tell us what’s on the pictures. We predict that the group will identify the object that cannot be used as a screwdriver because it is made of rubber, but that looks like a screwdriver a screwdriver. And we predict that the group will identify the object that fulfills the functions of a screwdriver very well, looks like a corkscrew, but does not fulfill the functions of a corkscrew, as a corkscrew. The idea that objectivity and subjectivity can coincide appears to be difficult to swallow. It seems too difficult to maintain the necessary distinction between the ontological and epistemological. And this distinction is the very reason that objectivity and subjectivity are not always each other’s opposites. Miller is wrong when he assumes that Searle doesn’t care about objectivity and that anything goes. We said it before and we will say it again, because the idea so important: the fact that social reality is ontological subjective does not mean that social reality is also epistemological subjective, and it doesn’t mean that what is ontologically objective is always epistemological objective. “(…) just because the members of a hippie community under the influence of drugs sees what is in fact an ice cream cone as a screwdriver does not make it one. (…) The ice cream cone has not been designed to be and

150 The concept of function cannot be used as a screwdriver, notwithstanding the false beliefs of the members of the hippie community”.223 Searle never would agree with the reasoning that if somebody believes that an ice cream cone is a screwdriver it is a screwdriver. In order to fulfill a function an object should meet the necessary, prerequisite conditions. An ice cream cone does not meet those conditions. So stoned hippie agents may assign a screwdriver function to a ice cream cone, but because the necessary conditions to be a screwdriver are not met it will not function as a screwdriver. But if those hippies assign to a screwdriver the function of a murderous weapon unfortunately they can do so. So we have to distinguish between the necessary conditions in order to call objects a screwdriver, the design and manufacturing of an object that enables an agent to drill screws into wooden board, the conditions that have to be met in order to fulfill the screwdriving function, and the assignment of a function to an object that was made and designed to fulfill another function.

4.17 Defining the concept of function: first attempt

It is remarkable that Searle never gives a definition of the concept of function. Kroes fills the empty space. A. “For some object X to be an F, it is sufficient that X’s physical features, and those alone, enable X to function as an F.” The problem with his definition is that most objects are unable to fulfill functions on their own. A screwdriver is one of them. It needs an agent who knows how to handle a screwdriver. For object X to fulfill function F, it is necessary that X´s physical features enables a user of X to achieve the intended result. The second problem we have with his definition is that there is no distinction between a user and the designer. Any man-made product has a designer. The intended objectives are defined by the designer. Therefore the designer must be part of the definition: Object X may fulfill intended function F, if it enables a user of X to achieve the result that was intended by the designer of X. We are not there yet, because in order to enable a user of X to fulfill function F, it is necessary that X meets a number of characteristics, call them technical specifications, call them functional prerequisites. Still there is more. What happened to our terminology if a murderous individual uses a screwdriver to

151 Chapter 4 spread death and destruction? There is the possibility that the user has signed a function to designer did not intend. We call this a secondary function. The definition now goes as follows: Object X fulfills function F, if object X enables a user of X to achieve the result that was intended by the designer of X or assigned by its user. The primary function of an object enables its aimed user to achieve the objectives that were intended by the designer and wanted by the aimed user. The secondary function of an object enables the user of the object to achieve objectives that were desired by the user of the object, but were not intended by the designer. We use the word enable to stress the fact that it is the user, the agent who sees to it that the function is fulfilled. Without the user that will not be the case. Only because of the actions performed by the user the function of the object will be fulfilled. Without this performance there is no function. But if the object is not designed and produced according to specifications that enable the user to fulfill the intended function the function will not be fulfilled either. We call this the functional prerequisites of the object. Our definition starts with the phrase: “for object X to fulfill function F”, instead of “for some object, X to be an F”, because the main objective of our definition is not to determine whether an object is a screwdriver or not, but to link the specific object X to the specific function F. In this case both the object and the function are institutionalized and labeled by the words screwing and screwdriver. Definition A describes under what conditions we may call an object a screwdriver. To illustrate his point we ‘translate’ definition A in B. A. For some object X to be an F, it is sufficient that X’s physical features, and those alone, enable X to function as an F. B. We may call an object a screwdriver if its physical features enable the object to function as a screwdriver. The phrase enable X to function as an F in definition A neglects the fact that an object does not fulfill a function by itself, but needs an agent, a user. Objects enable users to fulfill a function. Objects make the fulfillment of a function possible. Without an agent objects are just objects. Without the proper use by a user the object will never fulfill the function the designer has intended. Definition B recognizes users and designers. Definition A does not. If we want to explain the function of a man-made object is necessary to recognize the existence of users and designers, for there is no man-

152 The concept of function made object without them. A man-made object that is not designed cannot be made, cannot be produced. A man-made object without the user has no purpose to be produced. A man-made object will have no user if - in the eyes of the user - the object does not fulfill a function for the user. A man-made object doesn’t fulfill the intended function for a user if the user does not achieve the result that was intended by the designer. This can be caused by mistake in the design, or by mistake in the production. If the designer does not understand consumer needs he designs the wrong object. If the designer makes a mistake in designing the physical features, the object doesn’t function properly. The starting point should not be the screwdriver, but the function screwdrivers are expected to perform. Was it the intention of the producer to make an object that has the intrinsic features to drill a screw in a wooden board? Was it the expectation of the user that an object called screwdriver perform the function of drilling a screw into a wooden board? Was it the intention of the user to drill a screw in a board? Was the object that society calls a screwdriver determined to be a screwdriver?

4.18 The function of an act

Agents may fulfill functions autonomously. In that case a consumer does not buy an object that enables him to fulfill the functions he wants to be fulfilled. In that case he is not the agent, but he hires one. The agent may perform functions with or without the help of objects, but the user, the customer needs the agent to operate the objects. Without the agent the objects are of no use, their is no more to them, but their physical features. The diagnosis of a physician, the motivating words of a ski instructor, the plead of a court-lawyer, or the maintenance of the garden by the gardener. All of those actions have specific functions that are performed with or without the help of objects.

4.19 The function of a phenomenon or institution

As a rule man-made objects are not the subject of functional analysis in the social sciences, phenomena or institutions are. Explaining why

153 Chapter 4 functions should be sharply distinguished from the motives Merton tells the story of the Hopi ceremonials designed to produce abundant rainfall. This ceremony may be labeled a superstitious practice of primitive folk, writes Merton but the sociologist, who is able to make a functional analysis knows better, he suggests. “Given the concept of latent function, however, we are reminded of his behavior may perform a function for the group, although this function may be quite remote from the avowed purpose of the behavior. (…) Cer- emonials may fulfill the latent function of reinforcing the group identity by providing a periodic occasion on which to scattered members of the group assemble to engage in a common activity”.224 The sociologist will probably agree with de weather expert that the rain ceremony doesn’t produce rain. But for the sociologist, that is hardly the point. He uses the functional method to observe and analyse “a standardized practice designed to achieve an objective which one knows from accredited physical science cannot be thus achieved.”225 Structural functionalism focuses on standardized practices, that can be any social phenomena, whether it is lying, smoking, monogamy, dating or institutions, like marriage, science or the church.

4.20 The function for whom or for what

After specifying the object of function we continue our conceptual analysis with the subject of function; the function for whom or for what. Man-made objects have a designer, in most cases an agent who actually sees to it that the object fulfills its function. Next to the designer their is a beneficiary who should benefit if the function will be fulfilled. If we want to know for who, or for what a function is to be fulfilled we have to look for a potential beneficiary. Sometimes agent - mostly the user - and beneficiary coincide, for instance in case of a notebook. A notebook enables an agent to make notes while traveling. The agent should benefit using the notebook. In case of an AD for a notebook the agent of the notebook is also the agent of the ad, because if the agent of the notebook doesn’t read or see the AD the function of the AD will be never fulfilled. But it is not the agent who should benefit reading the ad, but the designer, or the organization he is designing for, if you like.

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If the agent is the potential beneficiary of the design, the designer designs the objects with the preferences of the agent, beneficiary, the potential user of the object, in mind. During the process of designing the user is the designer’s source of inspiration. If the designer is the potential beneficiary of the design, the designer designs the object according to his own preferences, assuming that those are equal to the preferences of the organization he is working for. In the case of newspapers there is no consensus among journalists what position to take. Is the agent or the designer, the reader, or the journalist, the subject of the function of the newspaper? At this point we ask for special attention to the fact that the functional analysis can start with an object, or with a function. If we start with an object we will ask the questions that were asked in this paragraph until now. If we start with the function the object or action is the outcome. An example. The function is: “Something that enables us to make notes while traveling”. The outcome could be a list of what we call functional equivalents, that varies from copybook via voice recorder to electronic notebook. Another example. The function is: “Something that enables the consumer to get an overview of the notebooks that are on the market”. At first the outcome could be a list with functional equivalents that varies from newspaper, via magazine to website. The second outcome could be a website da- tabase with all the notebooks, including specifications that are on the market.

4.21 Primary and secondary functions

It is possible that an agent - a user of a man-made object - assigns a function to an object that was not intended by the designer. Although the intention of the designer was to enable a user to drill a screw into a wooden board a user drills the iron bar of the screwdriver into the chest of a man. This was definitely not the intended, but unfortunately the assigned function. Or, to give a less violent example: a user can use a newspaper to be informed about world affairs, which corresponds with the function the editorial staff intended to fulfill, or he can use the paper to articulate

155 Chapter 4 his social position, a function that was not intended by the journalist but assigned by the user. If a user assigns a function to the man-made object that is not intended by the designer we refer to it as a secondary function. Or a man buys a paper because he knows that the first thing he wants to do in the morning is to read the morning paper for 10 minutes, because he is convinced that people like him should have a newspaper, because he knows that he had to answer awkward questions by his peers if he doesn’t have a newspaper. The opposite can happen as well: I’m not buying a newspaper, because my peers will laugh at me if I do, because I have hardly any time to have breakfast let alone read a newspaper, because I am confident that it is not necessary to read a newspaper. If an object is used in a way the designer did not intend we call it a secondary function. Secondary functions are not derived from the initial logic of the product or service involved, in the case of newspapers they have little to do with the content, but they do make a contribution to the objectives readers want to realize. A newspaper is not invented to be a symbol of status but for a consumer, a specific newspaper brand can contribute to the fact that the reader’s social environment attributes to him a certain social status. Secondary functions must be independent from the primary functions. If a secondary function can only be fulfilled through content it is not a secondary function but an explanation of the primary function. If we say that a newspaper sees to it that a reader stays socially connected, social connectedness is not a function, but a possible explanation about the type of content a newspaper contains in order to connect the reader socially. Albeit secondary functions are not related to media content, they do make a contribution to the objectives readers want to realize. We distinguish three clusters of secondary functions: social, psychological and cultural. Primary functions are linked to the rationale of the product or service involved. In the case of newspapers we presume the primary function to be a specific mix of news and entertainment readers would like to obtain. The primary function of cloth is protection, a secondary function is identity, the primary function of a painting is the aesthetical gratification, a secondary function is an investment.226 Pieter Vermaas and Wybo Houkes used the words ‘proper function’ and ‘accidental function’. “Proper functions can typically be understood as functions ascribed standardly to the artefact, whereas accidental func-

156 The concept of function tions are ascribed only occasionally.”227 These criteria for distinction are not what we would call ‘clear’, for what is meant by ‘standardly’ and ‘occasionally’. The names proper and accidental suggest a hierarchy between the two concepts. Proper is better than accidental. Houkes and Vermaas even use the word ‘promoted’ as they explain that accidental functions can become proper functions.228 The third problem we have with the dichotomy of Houkes and Vermaas is that the word accidental suggests sheer chance. The function came into being by an accident. Nobody intended the function to be there. The difference between primary and secondary functions is more rigorous, we believe. In case of a primary function the designer’s intention coincides with the users assignment, whereas in a secondary function the designer’s intention do not coincide with the intention of the user, partly because there is no designer. Later, when we distinguish between natural objects and man-made objects we go into the problem of the designer. The primary function of newspapers is the specific mix of news and entertainment readers would like to obtain. Of course the function of a newspaper could be the contribution to the extermination of biting mosquito’s, but this is not the reason a newspaper was designed and produced, the primary function of a newspaper is not its killing ability. The primary functions are linked to the words and images it contains. The primary functions of a newspaper are content related functions. (1) First of all there is a need for a mix of topics related to different areas of interest, like politics and administration, economy, sports, art, or travel. (2) Secondly there are functions in the strict sense of the word, the specific contributions to the objectives readers want to realize, like bare facts, context, elumination, opinion, advice, emotion and entertainment. (3) Thirdly clusters of perspectives such as the practical and general perspective and the human, social and institutional perspectives belong to the primary function. (4) In the fourth place the tone of the content can make a difference. Is the tone negative, positive, neutral. (5) The type of language - personal, formal, or something in between - may influence the desired function. (6) Depth can be a content function. A text or image has depth if it acknowledges the complexity, the many layers and many dimensions

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of reality. It has no depth if it pictures reality as a one dimensional image, where people do it right or wrong, where things are beautiful or ugly and where the goodies are clearly separated from the baddies. (7) Layout can have an important influence on function preference. We measure this preference by looking at the variation, frequency and intensity of elements a page is made of. In order to establish the fact that if a newspaper or even all newspapers contribute to the objectives readers want to realize we must compare demand with supply. We must compare the mix of preferred functions with the supplied functions. Not only as an observer determines supply empirically, but also as newspaper readers perceive the supply.

4.22 System functions

In the social sciences as well as in biology, systems are the subject of function. The function sees to it that the system stays alive, the system ‘functions’. The function of the heart, the lungs, eyes or legs. As also man-made constructions serve functions for the common good. It is remarkable that in ‘Mertonian’ functionalism the content of the function is already specified: they see to it that system adapts and adjusts, in short: survives.229

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4.23 Functional prerequisites

The concept of function has a voluntary and a deterministic dimension. The user who assigns functions to an object, or refrains from doing so acts voluntary in the sense that it is his choice to say yes or no. Maybe this choice is manipulated, maybe his upbringing influences his decision, or even the functioning of his brain has an influence on the decision-making process, but it is the user who ultimately makes a decision. A person is free to decide if he wants to have a cup of tea, but after he made his decision he needs boiled water and if he doesn’t live in the mountains or near the Dead Sea it is necessary to heat the water until it reaches a temperature of 100 °C. Choosing a function takes place in the voluntary dimension, to fulfill a function is not just a question of free will. Choosing to have scrambled eggs is a voluntary act. Of course, you need eggs and of course you need money to buy them, unless you have chickens. And of course it’s possible that you don’t even know what scrambled eggs are. So how can you choose to have scrambled eggs? Nevertheless choosing to have scrambled eggs is a voluntary act, because if you know about scrambled eggs and if you possess eggs it’s up to you to prepare the meal on not. The decision to boil water is a voluntary act, but heating it until it reaches 100 °C is beyond free will. It is necessary, unavoidable. Even Bill Gates is not able to buy water at sea level that can be boiled below or above 100 °C The designer who wants to design an object that enables a user to achieve certain objectives – in other words to fulfill a specific function – enters the deterministic dimension, for only if the object is designed according to necessary specifications the user of the object will be able to fulfill the intended functions. If the designer of a car forgets to draw the engine, the car will not fulfill its transportation function. The beginning of the design is a process of voluntary action. The designer makes up his mind and decides what functions the object of his design should enable to fulfill. But then, after that decision has been made the design process is determined by necessary conditions. Whether the object of design are sunglasses, a fountain pen or a newspaper article, as soon as it is clear how strong the lenses must be, how thick the user of the fountain pen wants to write, or what kind of function a newspaper article must fulfill the designer is not free to do what he wants. The lenses have to be polished in a certain way, the flow

159 Chapter 4 of ink needs special attention and in order to enable a reader to achieve the intended objectives the article should be written in a certain way. If the lenses are not polished according to specifications, and the ink flow is not properly installed we will have a malfunction. In his case the malfunction is due to a production error, but the malfunction can also be the result of a bad design, a design does not encompass all necessary specifications.230 Not only the designer is confronted with the deterministic dimension. The user who wants to fulfill a certain function by using an object will only succeed if the use is done according to a certain plan. Anyone can buy a violin, anyone can use a violin, but only if the violin is used in a certain way it will fulfill the intended function. Using a violin is no guarantee to play the violin. In order to fulfill the musical function a user of a violin has to meet a long list of conditions that are necessary to play the violin. We see that both the designer and the user have to deal with necessary conditions. If a reader wants to understand why the dollar lost so much of its value in the first five years of the second millennium he could read a newspaper article on the subject with an elucidative function. The elucidative function means that after reading the article the reader could understand why the facts are the way they are. Could, not should, will, or shall, but could. The article gives capable and willing readers the tools that enable them to understand why the facts are that way they are. In this case the emphasis is on the structure of the article. Because of the structure of the article there’s a good chance that, after reading the article and under the condition that the reader is capable and willing, the reader understands why the facts are the way they are, why the dollar lost so much of its value in the first five years of the second millennium. We do not claim that the reader will understand. There are no guar- antees. Function does not mean that a result will take place, but that the result could take place if the necessary conditions are met. Those conditions have to do with the structure of the text, and they have to do with the capabilities of the reader. A text that does not explain why the facts took place will never fulfill the elucidative function. An article that explains why the facts took place, but that was read by somebody who did not grasp the reasoning will never fulfill the elucidative function either.

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In order to fulfill the intended function both object and user have to meet necessary conditions. Not any object will fulfill the intended function in the hands of even a very capable user. If the piano doesn’t meet the technical specifications that are necessary to fulfill the piano function even a piano player, who is a genius, a unique talent and a piano virtuoso will not be able to fulfill the piano function, to play that piano. If the piano is a splendid piece of craftsmanship but if there is no piano genius that touches its keys, not even a mediocre musician that plays a miserable melody, there is no fulfillment. If the function of an article is to enable a reader to understand why the dollar is so low against the euro and the article contains five arguments why the dollar is so low against the euro, but after reading the article this reader does not understand the explanation, it is very well possible that this reader lacks the skills to understand the article. A designer has to be aware of the functional prerequisites that are related to both the product as well as to the users skills. Houkes and Ver- maas suggested that user plans are part of a ‘theory of artifacts’. They claim that this approach brings in more than the by now mainstream functional method. User plans are necessary. You cannot do without it, but they are not part of a definition of function, let alone a theory of function.231 User plans are a function themselves. Sometimes artifacts enable users to use that specific artifact by means of a user guide. Sometimes a specific action enables users to use a specific artifact by means of a workshop or an entire educational program. And sometimes we refrain from doing something special, because we assume the user knows. This is what we call professional expertise. We must not forget that artifacts, such as a user guide, actions such as a workshop, and professional expertise are a means to enable a user to achieve the objectives she wants to achieve. Let us scrutinize the following example. Somebody wants to go from Rotterdam to Amsterdam. A car -a man- made object, an artifact- enables a user to achieve the result she wants to achieve, that is to go from Rotterdam to Amsterdam. It is also the intention of the car’s designer that the car fulfills the transport function; in this case to travel from Rotterdam to Amsterdam, that is, if she is able to use the car. In other words: if she can drive. Fifteen years ago she wanted to learn how to use a car. A driving instructor set up a user plan that helped her to learn how to use a car. The function of an object - car - is to enable a user to achieve the objectives she wants to achieve (to go from Rotterdam to Amsterdam). As she wants to use

161 Chapter 4 the object often and using it is not self-evident she sees to it that she will know how to use this object, artifact, that is called car. An institution called driving school, by means of a driving instructor, fulfills that function. The driving instructor is limping. He twisted his ankle and walks with the aid of a cane. That is to say, it looks like a cane, but it is no cane, it is a branch, a stick that came of a tree, a natural object that was assigned to by the driving instructor the functions usually fulfilled by a cane. A DVD-designer sees to it that the functions the device enables the user to fulfill are functions a user wants to fulfill and he sees to it that the user is able to fulfill those functions. The designer has to design the device in a way that an average user will be able to operate the apparatus. A design that only enables a high skilled user to fulfill the intended functions will not do. The functional prerequisites are the necessary conditions of an object to enable an agent to fulfill the intended function. Those prerequisites could relate (1) to the characteristics of the object, (2) to the process of using the object in order to fulfill the function, (3) to the process of fulfilling a function, or (4) to the process of manufacturing the object that enables an agent to fulfill a function. Ad 1. In order to drill a screw into a wooden board an object is needed with the following characteristics: (a) fits into the head of the screw, (b) allows the user to twist the screw clockwise. Ad 2. The process of drilling a screw into wooden board consists of the following steps: (a) The agent must see to it that the screwdriver’s point fits into the screws head, (b) the agent must turn the screwdriver clockwise. Ad 3. The third kind of functional prerequisites, are the necessities that had to be met in the production process. In order to fry an egg it is of course necessary to have an egg, it is necessary to break the shell of the egg, it is necessary that the interior of the egg comes in contact with a smooth surface of at least 42° C. It is not necessary to plan in advance how to break the shell - with a knife, or with the elegant manoeuvre of the professional cook on the rim of a casserole. The cook may choose the kind of smooth surface and also how the surface is heated - a pan, a stone, the hood of a car, butter, olive oil, margarine. The fact that we do not have to plan everything in advance is because we focus on the function not on the means to fulfill the function. As long as they fulfill the function anything goes. We call that functional

162 The concept of function alternatives. Because of functional alternatives it is possible to separate functional from professional autonomy. On the operational level the professional is autonomous, choosing a functional alternative is the professional’s choice, but she does so within a functional framework Ad 4. The fourth kind of functional prerequisite the necessary conditions that had to be met in the process of manufacturing the object. What conditions are necessary to produce an object? What functions have to be fulfilled in order to make the object?

4.24 The definition of function

Before we formulate the definition of function we will give a round up of our findings. a) All functions are observer relative b) Some objects can fulfill a function autonomously, but most objects need an agent c) Man-made objects are designed intentionally d) The designer of a user oriented man-made object intentionally enables the user of that object to achieve objectives that he assumes the user would like to achieve e) The designer of a designer oriented man-made object intentionally enables the user of that object to achieve objectives that the designer would like to achieve f) If a user of a user oriented man-made object assigns a function to the object that was intended by the designer we call it a primary function g) If a user of a user oriented man-made object assigns a function to the object that was not intended by the designer we call it a secondary function h) In order to enable the user to fulfill a specific function using an object, the object should meet the necessary conditions.

In this study we use a concept of function that is connected to a man- made object, designed to enable a user to achieve objectives that are also intended by the designer. We acknowledge the fact that users can assign a function that were not intended by the designer. This objectives in the following definitions:

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(1) The function of an object enables users to achieve the objectives they intended to achieve (2) The primary function of an object enables its user to achieve the desired objectives that were intended by the designer (3) The secondary function of an object enables the user of the object to achieve objectives that were not intended by the designer.

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Chapter 5 A taxonomy of newspaper content Chapter 5

a taxonomy of news paper professional vocabulary ambiguous content

s pecific pers pectives areas of functions interes t

bare facts overview human s ocial Politics S ociety C rime Health & fitnes s Dis as ters , accidents Living elucidation opinion and calamities Travel ins titutional Mobility Art & culture E c o n o m y M e d ia S ports Leis ure advice emotion S cience C elebrities R eflection on life New products E ducation Games & relaxation practical general entertainment

local national international

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5.0 Introduction

In 2001 Denis McQuail wrote “that the media ‘texts’ which form the object of interest to audiences are particularly resistant to adequate classification in terms relevant to audience needs, except at the most superficial level. In addition, for various reasons, gratification researchers have never been sufficiently interested in the actual content all of what they study or, even if interested, unable to incorporate any sensitive measure of content into research (if only because of the scale of the task).”232 There is no conceptual framework, not even a clear vocabulary that could be used describing the content of a newspaper. The words that are used by journalists are far from systematic and are certainly for their eyes only. In this chapter you’ll find examples of this inadequate nomenclature. If it’s not possible to describe the content of a newspaper because there are no words to do so, it is also impossible to describe the preferences of a reader. In this chapter we will try to develop a taxonomy that enables us to describe the content of a newspaper objectivity, that is independent of the feelings and opinions of the researcher. The same taxonomy could be used measuring reader preferences. Three groups of criteria are used: areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives.

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5.1 A taxonomy for newspaper content

In the real world, the common way of describing newspaper content is by means of an informal professional vocabulary, often referred to as ‘genre’.233 Genres are a pandemonium of style, function, data collection, perspectives and ways of presentation. News reports, news analyses, reconstructions and editorials are based on their functions. A news report gives the bare facts, a news analysis explains what is going on, a reconstruction tells us how something happened and an editorial makes the paper’s standpoint clear. A human interest story is written from a human perspective. A column is written from a perspective that is typical for the writer. A portrait depicts someone’s personality. An interview is a means of data collection, but it also stands for a specific format of questions and answers. A reportage is a mix of style, a means of data collection and a form of presentation as it combines short interviews with observations. A feature can be anything as long as it is considered important. A background story can be a collection of facts, a historical or geographical overview, a story that tells the reader what is going on, explains why something is happening, or is a compilation of interviews. As genres are not part of a systematic nomenclature, this is already sufficient reason not to use them as a tool to describe newspaper content. The second reason is that concepts that are used to describe newspaper content must have a practical significance for both journalists and their readers. The editorial management needs a systematic vocabulary in order to establish unambiguous understanding about the story a journalist is going to write. The journalists need the terminology in order to write an article that is fit for use. Without a systematic vocabulary, researchers have difficulty in measuring reader’s preferences and their perception of supply. A researcher needs a terminology if he wants to ask questions that are meaningful for both journalists and readers. In the previous chapter we claimed that the concept of function would do the job.

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5.1.1 The Utrecht approach of text functions Lentz described in 1991 several text functions. Two years later together with Pander Maat he elaborated on this primary contribution. In this study the authors developed methods for the evaluation of advisory texts, particularly about subsidies. It is important to realize that the objective of their study was to develop instruments for evaluation. They wanted to separate a good text from a bad one. Secondly The Utrecht School did not apply this evaluation method to mass media, such as newspapers, radio, television, or Internet; or to documents written by commercial or governmental organizations, such as reports and memos. They focused on persuasive texts, especially information service and public relations material. The concept of function was their point of departure. They claim that every evaluation should start with the question of what functions the text should fulfill. What effect should the text have on the knowledge, attitudes and intentions of the readers?234 Despite the different objective, their unique use of the concept of function requires knowledge of their approach. Lentz’s methodic description of supply oriented text functions contains four elements: • The indication of the intended communicative effect • A global indication of the subject • An indication of the target group • The indication of the policy objective that must be accomplished through the communicative effect. The method’s objective is not entirely clear. Sometimes we have the impression that the method is used to assess whether a text is functional or not. It is not about determining the function, but about determining the functional prerequisites: what are the necessary conditions of a text in order to have the intended communicative effect? In the case of elucidation, the text enables the user to understand why the situation being reported on is the case. Sometimes it is suggested that the method is used to determine the preference for a function. In that case the question is not whether the article meets the functional prerequisites but what function is preferred in the first place. Does the reader want to know why Obama got elected? Or is he more interested in his track record; or does he prefer to read about the consequences of the election; or is he satisfied with the bare facts?

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Here we have arrived at a crucial junction, the one that separates the voluntary path from the determinist road. The first one is about preferences. What functions readers prefer. The second one is about necessary conditions, functional prerequisites. If I want to fulfill the function of elucidation it is necessary that an answer to the question ‘why’ is part of the content. If an answer to the question ‘why’ is not part of the content, this very content does not serve the function of elucidation. The survey is a means to find out the nature of the readers preferences. Content analysis is an instrument that measures functional prerequisites. Lentz and Pander Maat note that although informative purposes are characteristic of documents for which information is a purpose in itself, information often also allows readers to make an assessment on the basis of which they make a decision. The words often also indicate that apparently sometimes it is a case and sometimes it is not. The same function will have a different meaning if a question is approached from a different perspective. In this case the perspective can be practical or not practical. Practical implies that the text enables the reader to make a decision about his behavior. The same function has a different meaning when a different perspective is applied. Ten years later, Lentz and Pander Maat used the functions for the design of documents.235 The documents are still documents, still contain persuasive texts, are still produced by the government, or other institutions that want to influence a target group. But they are looking at documents from a totally different angle. Instead of evaluating they are designing. This change of perspective increased the attention on the reader. A different set of functions, we believe, could be practical. We will elucidate this point extensively in chapter 6. For now two examples: first we briefly sketch the subject and then we ask questions that are linked to different functions. What kind of questions will come up when designing a text with an informative function, or an instructive, persuasive, directive, or expressive one? We believe that a methodic classification of primary newspaper functions consists of a collection of possible types of questions. Types of questions, not questions, because it is not possible, of course, to make an inventory of all conceivable questions. However, it is possible to make a classification of different types of questions. The organizing principle of this classification is function. Different functions provoke

172 A taxonomy of newspaper content different types of questions. This classification of question types, organized by different functions is our taxonomy for newspaper content. It is a heuristic aid for the designers of the primary function of the newspaper and it is a tool for the media scientist who wants to describe newspaper content. We defined the primary function of an object as the ability for a user to accomplish a result using the object that was designed to fulfill that function. The primary function of an object enables a user to accomplish a result he wants to accomplish. So what kind of result do the readers of newspapers want to accomplish? What impact should an article or a picture have on them? Let us begin to answer the question in general terms and specify gradually. In general terms, the impact can be cognitive, conative or affective. This classification is based on a typology of mental activities that goes back to medieval thinkers like Thomas Aquinas who distinguished between the concept of mind, feelings and will. In the 18th century, the idea was reinvented by German psychologists and it was adopted in the 19th century by their colleagues in Scotland, England and America. The social psychologist William McDougall revealed himself as the pro- tagonist of the triad in the beginning of the 20th century and in the 21st century the distinction is used in psychology, marketing theory and linguistics.236 We believe that only in showing its use in practice, we can explain and describe the meaning of the functions and perspectives we distinguish. Therefore we will reserve some chapters for doing so and alternate examples with elaborations and definitions. Functions become meaningful after they are linked to a specific subject: readers want the bare facts about something, an overview of something, an elucidation of something, an opinion about something. As a consequence, a description of primary functions must include a description of the subject of primary functions, otherwise it will remain unclear what the function is about. Moreover, as a reader prefers one function to the other he may also prefer some areas of interest above others. Thus, if we want to make an inventory of primary function preferences, we need to include a list of preferences concerning different areas of interest, such as politics, economy, sports, art, and entertainment. Before we specify the different kinds of topics and the different kinds of functions, we have to realize that the content of a text or image also depends on the writer’s perspective. Different perspectives generate

173 Chapter 5 different questions. A practical perspective generates other questions than a perspective which is not practical. A human perspective generates other questions than an institutional perspective. Next to function and perspective there is the tone of the presentation. Tone has to do with tacit valuation of what is presented. Without being explicit, the writer makes it clear that he has a low, high or no opinion of the subject at hand. The type of language has to do with the lingo of a specific group or category. Street language is different from academic language, popular speech must be distinguished from formal speech. ‘Depth’ is the sixth content dimension. As is mentioned in chapter four text or image has depth if it acknowledges the complexity, the many layers of reality. It has no depth if social reality is one dimensional. Something is black or white, never grey. We believe that a methodic classification of primary newspaper functions consists of possible types of what we call central questions, with the emphasis on type, because it is not possible, of course, to make an inventory of all conceivable questions. To illustrate this classification we show a list of central questions based on different functions and perspectives. The list is about the news that a soccer team will start playing on artificial grass next season.

Artificial grass 1. “What is artificial grass made of?” 2. “What is the opinion of the president of club X on artificial grass?” 3. “What are the different techniques for producing artificial grass?” 4. “Why does natural grass die, or become muddy?” 5. “Which club first started using artificial grass and who followed and when” 6. “Is artificial grass a mere hype?” 7. “What are the environmental regulations for using artificial grass?” 8. “What are the points of selection if your club wants to buy artificial grass?” 9. “Why is it easier to play on artificial grass?” 10. “What is the kick of playing on artificial grass?” 11. “How many clubs use artificial grass?”

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The list of questions shows how different functions generate different kinds of questions. It gives the reader the bare facts, (2,11) an overview of the facts, (1,3,5,7,) explains why the facts are the case (4,9), gives advice, (8) tries to involve the reader emotionally, (10) or gives value judgments separating right from wrong.(6) Some of the questions have an identical function but will generate a different kind of article. Questions 1 and 5, for example, are both factual but have a different content. This is because they are approached from different perspectives. “What is artificial grass made of” is asked from a technological perspective as is question 3 - the question about the different techniques for producing artificial grass. The question about the environmental regulations (7) is institutional and the question about the use of artificial grass is social. A combination of functions and perspectives results in a pallet of central questions; choosing one type of question instead of another has fundamental consequences for the tone of the newspaper. We believe that the meaning of the various functions, perspectives and areas of interest can best be clarified in its use. By showing its use in practice, we can explain and describe the meaning of the functions and perspectives we distinguish. In the coming paragraphs we will describe all the seven functions, five perspectives, tone, language, depth, and layout. The functions and perspectives will be illustrated in a style that belongs to newspaper writing. We alternate those descriptions with a definition and explanation of the concepts at hand. But before we start with this endeavor we will provide an overview of the content functions.

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5.2 Specific functions

All television channels showed pictures of a burning skyscraper, float- ing debris, blaring sirens, screaming people. Panic, chaos. Every ten minutes, a woman in tears reported on camera that she had been talking to her son on the phone just before the plane hit the building. All television channels showed the same images and kept doing so in the following hours. Within twenty-four hours most viewers could visualize the scenes without looking. The image of dust and panic was followed by commentaries from the usual politicians who told reporters that it was a tragedy and that whoever did this would not escape punishment. After the dignitaries, the commentators took the floor. They told the audience that it was a tragedy and that the world would be never the same after September 11. During the first hour of the catastrophe people asked questions like: How many people were killed? Who did it? How was this possible? How did they do it? How could it have happened? The answers to these questions materialized in television images, newspaper photos, and articles that made sure that the audience got the bare facts, but they also involved the audience emotionally in what had happened. Bare facts and emotion are two of the seven functions we distinguish. In the following paragraphs we define and illustrate those seven functions.* On September 12, 2001, the Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dag- blad wrote on the front page: “Attacks on the WTC in New York and the Pentagon yesterday killed probably thousands of people. The responsibility for this act of terror has not yet been claimed.” On the evening of September 11, the reader had already heard this news from radio bulletins and could have seen the devastation on television. Some people did not ask questions as they heard and realized what had happened on September 11. They were in shock and they were angry, or just afraid. They wanted to read stories and to look at pictures that confirmed their emotional involvement. The media provided the artifacts that satisfied this need in great measure. Those were the images of fear and panic, of sorrow and helplessness. The front page of the British The Times was filled with a picture of a Trade Center blanketed in red clouds and the line: “When war came to

* The same taxonomy can be used to describe the content of other media. In case of television and Internet one should take into account that e.g. sound and image are produced simultaneously.

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America.” The articles and pictures saw to it that the newspaper reader felt emotionally involved. The designer and producer had aimed at the heart of the reader, not at his mind. The function of emotion enables the reader to commit, have compassion. The emotion function should not be confused with the emotional content of story. In practice, there is a big chance that if the story itself is emotional the function will be too, but this is not always the case. The WTC disaster has an extremely high emotional content, but that does not mean that every photo, every article, every diagram in every item will fulfill an emotional function. On the other hand, stories which are generally considered emotionless, can lead to texts or pictures which fulfill an emotional function. To give an extreme example, we leave the Twin Towers and enter the world of mathematics. Or to be more precise Fermat’s last theorem, a 17th century puzzle that remained a puzzle until Andrew John Wiles solved it. Of course a general newspaper can try and explain Fermat’s last theorem, or the paper can try and answer the question of why the theorem was so difficult to solve. The emotional function of the article would picture a scholar who solves a problem his colleagues had pondered over for 400 years. The story shows the euphoria of a young man who did what his peers could not do. And the story shows the disappointment when Andrew John Wiles found out that he had made an error. From there the story describes how Wiles persevered and solved the theorem two years later. This is not a story about mathematics but about the passion of the mathematician. It commits the reader emotionally to the subject of mathematics.

As the hours went by on September 11, 2001, it started to become clear that something atrocious had happened in New York and Washington. Besides facts and compassion, people were looking for stories that gave them an overview of the facts: the course of events, minute-by-minute, a list of previous terrorist attacks, an overview of the reactions from the world leaders.

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Table 13 Functions Functions Cognitive 1. The bare facts Enables the reader to get acquainted with unconnected facts Isolated data or events 2. Overview Enables the reader to know facts or events that have been put Puffing facts in a context into a context: historical, future oriented or geographical 3. Elucidation Enables the reader to know why or how the facts have taken Understanding why or how place 4. Opinion Right or wrong Enables the reader to know the paper’s opinion 5. Advice and tips Conative What to do? Enables the reader to act effectively in a specific situation Affective 6. Emotion Getting involved Enables the reader to commit emotionally 7. Entertainment Pure enjoyment Enables the reader to amuse himself

Overview, the second function on our list of seven, places the bare facts in a context so that the reader can oversee the facts in a manage- able way. Elucidation is the fourth function. It is always an answer to a ‘why question’. Why did it happen? How could it happen? What was the motivation behind it? Why would people be prepared and be capable of blowing themselves up while taking thousands of people with them into their graves? Why didn’t the Secret Service or military intelligence know that such an organizational set-up was in the making? Why is it that these security institutions did not have a clue about the situation, or is the assumption wrong? In that case the question is: Why didn’t they take the information seriously? How can terrorist networks successfully accomplish such complex operations completely undiscovered? All those questions are the imaginary questions that belong to the function of elucidation. The function of opinion sees to it that the reader knows the writer’s judgment. An item with the function of opinion, tells the reader if the bare facts are right or wrong. This function is appreciated by media consumers who want to hear a clear opinion from their newspaper, their program or their favorite journalist about topics that concern their interests. They want the journalist to give an assessment of the facts and events. To this point we distinguished four functions: bare facts, overview, elucidation and opinion. Those four functions are of a cognitive

178 A taxonomy of newspaper content nature. The second group of functions are labeled conative. It is not about knowing, but about acting. Readers who appreciate this function want to act, and want to know how to act. They want advice and tips. How can I best accomplish the things I want to do? In the case of the WTC catastrophe it would be questions such as: How can I find out if any of my friends or family members were among the victims that were found? How do I get to the U.S.? What do I need to do if I want to go to the U.S? What must I be alert for if I go to the U.S.? This function we call the advice function. The third group of functions are of an affective nature. We distinguish the specific functions, entertainment, and the emotion. The entertainment function enables the readers to amuse themselves. Best not be too serious, preferably with a laugh. As long as it does not intend to elucidate, give an opinion or advice. It is just meant to entertain. Com- bining functions is possible if the one function serves the other. An article that begins with a scene that tries to involve the reader emotionally and then proceeds to explain why what happened has happened combines emotion and elucidation. But the function of emotion serves the elucidation. Answering the question ‘why?’ is the reason the article was written in the first place. In the following paragraphs we describe in more detail the seven newspaper functions and the most common perspectives.

5.2.1 The Bare Facts “The Secretary General of the United Nations has come to an agreement with the Iraqi government in regards to the weapons inspections of the United Nations”, we read. Further on it was announced that “today it will be 15 degrees”; that “the price of coffee has risen by ten cents”, that “according to the Prime Minister, considerable agreement existed within the cabinet”; that “according to the candidate, unemployment would decrease if his party were to be in government”; and that “a great deal of the country was under water”. All of these announcements allow the reader to become aware of facts. Bare facts. Not necessarily true facts, or all the facts, but simply the bare facts that are presented without an intentional connotation. If the Secretary General of the UN comes to an agreement with Iraq, then this news item allows the public to become aware of the fact that the Secretary General of the UN has come to an agreement with Iraq.

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Whether it is true or not is not the issue. The public is not able to assess if it is true or not. It is just assumed to be true as the public expectation is that the newspaper would not lie about these types of facts. “The newspaper reports the truth and my newspaper would never print nonsense.” Of course the public does not know whether or not it is true as the public hardly has the means to confirm this news item. In order to make a news item with a factual function, it does not matter if the facts are true or not. Naturally, it goes without saying that it is very important that the journalist does not present falsehoods, but by the determination of the factual function, the actual content is not the issue but rather the manner in which the content is presented. But the issue is not the style, the form, or genre. It is the function. Form would not be the correct word choice because form refers to the manner in which the news is packaged, the style, the looks, the feel. If it is the intention to fulfill a factual function then the producer must refrain from his evaluation of the content. There is a fundamental difference between value-free and valuing free. It is impossible to be value-free because social reality is a construction. But it is possible to refrain from valuing; it is possible to be non-judgmental. And this distinction is made here. It is for these reasons that the questions of truth and accuracy are not an issue when one chooses for the factual function. Bare facts do not necessarily have to be accurate facts. The statement that “according to John water boils at 90 degrees”, is a fact. The fact that water boils at 90 degrees may well be untrue, but it is a fact that John did say it. “The thermometer indicates a temperature of 15 degrees Celsius”, is then just as good a fact as “According to the Dutch Weather Service Bureau KNMI it will be 15 degrees Celsius today.” There is a UN press conference in which the Secretary General states that an agreement has been reached with Iraq. If at that exact moment the American president states that no agreement has been reached between the UN and Iraq, the fact remains that the Secretary General has said that an agreement has been reached with Iraq. It could be that the fact does not coincide with the truth but it is a fact that the president and the Secretary General did actually say what they said. The journalist has written down the statement which came straight from the president’s mouth. As to the question of why the president says that no agreement has been reached between the UN and Iraq while both the UN and Iraq are saying that they have in fact reached an

180 A taxonomy of newspaper content agreement, the president will respond that he is unaware of any such agreement. That actually is not true, as he does know about it. However the statement that he is unaware of such an agreement is a fact. If the American president states that the greatest threat to the western world is international terrorism, then that is a fact. If a news reader says the same thing based on his own assumptions, it is indeed a fact that the news reader actually did say it. However, for the reader, it does not fulfill the factual function as the news reader does not give the facts again without expounding on them. The same applies to a journalist who writes an article in which he asserts that international terrorism is the greatest threat to the western world. The journalist makes his reports based on facts and events. If he presents the events or facts without a context then we are dealing with a factual function. If he indicates and applies a specific meaning to the facts, then the function becomes dependent upon what sort of meaning he has indicated and applied. If he allows the public to know why the facts have taken place, then he is fulfilling the elucidation function. If he makes sure that the public knows his personal assessment of the facts, then he is fulfilling the opinion function. Again, there is nothing wrong with bringing the truth out in the open and exposing lies, but if the raw truth is laid out for all to see and if lies are plainly exposed, then that can lead to texts and pictures fulfilling not only a factual function, but also at the same time the overview, elucidation, opinion or emotion function. A news item which is about the truth of Watergate and written from the perspective of the factual function will present what happened in a dry manner without expounding on the subject any further than bare facts. A news item from the overview function will give the progression and developments of the events and an item which fulfills the elucidation function will provide an explanation of why the Watergate affair was able to take place. “We have complete confidence in the future,” says a politician who has just withstood a loss of ten seats. “The English and the American standpoint with regards to weapons in space is identical,” said Mrs. Thatcher, while she knew that differences in outlooks did indeed exist. “The council of ministers is unanimous,” the ministers state after they have just spent hours bickering and arguing complete differences of opinions. The journalist who reports these statements - even if the

181 Chapter 5 actual level of truth in the report is debatable - is fulfilling a factual function.

5.2.2 Overview On September 12, 2001, the day after the attack, the Dutch national daily de Volkskrant ran a story on page two with the following lead: “Terrorist attacks targeted at Americans are not a rarity. Over the past several years, hundreds of Americans have died as a result - civilians as well as military personnel - mostly abroad, sometimes in the U.S. itself. An overview.” The article made it clear that in April 1983, sixty-three people had been killed by a suicide bombing at the American Embassy in Beirut; that six months later, 214 American soldiers who were taking part in the peacekeeping mission in Lebanon were killed at their head- quarters; and that 224 people had been killed in bomb attacks on the American Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania. Only a few subscribers had asked themselves early that morning which terrorist attacks had been aimed at American targets in the last twenty years, but now that the article had been printed, many were pleasantly surprised with the overview that enabled them to place the facts in some kind of context. This time the context was historical, but it could have been geographical. In that case the article would have contained a list of countries where terrorist attacks have taken place; or an overview of the countries from which the perpetrators have come; or an overview of the countries where terrorists receive their training or can turn to for refuge. An overview does not explain why the facts occurred. A story that serves that function is called an elucidative story, the function a elucidative function. An overview can bring up questions that will lead to elucidation, but it is not elucidative. The answer to the question why the attacks have shifted from the Arabic world to western countries, is elucidative. The answer to the question where bombings have taken place the past twenty years serves an overview function. Context is determined by time and place. There is the geographical context (place) and historical context (past time) but there is also the consequence (future time). “The fact that Russia has abstained from voting in the UN Security Council means that it wants to send a signal to the United States to be very restrained in the use of military action.” A sentence such as this puts the fact - abstention - in a context by pointing at its consequence. The journalist enables the reader to assess

182 A taxonomy of newspaper content the importance of Russia’s abstention. He does not judge whether it is right or wrong that Russia has abstained from the vote - that would be opinion. He does not explain why Russia has abstained from the vote - that would be elucidative. He puts the facts in context by showing the consequences of the vote of abstention. We call this function overview as well.

5.2.3 Elucidation. The morning paper opened with the story that the political newcomer, Pim Fortuyn, had won the Rotterdam city council elections by obtain- ing more than a third of the votes. Most readers already knew about it as the previous evening all Dutch broadcasting channels had covered the ‘historical election’ as it was widely called. The opening of another morning paper had a different tenor. The story explained why this brand-new party had become the most powerful political force overnight. Why did Fortuyn grab 34% of the votes in the city council election? How did Fortuyn’s party manage to become the biggest party in Rotterdam? The story did not repeat the facts that had been fired at the readers during the last 24 hours. It elucidated. Eluci- dation assumes understanding of a situation, the logic of the facts, the rationale, the essence, the nucleus. Elucidation implies knowing why the facts are occurring or have occurred; why something happened, why something happens, what the mechanisms of its functioning are. The simplest and most practical question which leads to elucidation is “why?” Parents with children around four years of age know all about that. Why does it get dark? Why does a stone fall down but never up and why is water wet? Closely related to the ‘why’-question is the question of ‘how’. “How does a hydrogen battery work?” comes down to the same question of why a hydrogen battery works, although after the first question there is a risk that the meaning of the functioning will not be explicitly given, but in the second case, it will. Articles, photographs and graphics with an elucidative function should not be confused with an overview of the facts that gives the reader context but provides no explanations. Overview confines itself to an enumeration of facts; for example, a chronological or geographical enumeration. Overview shows a pattern; it does not explain why there is a pattern. Elucidation and opinion are also often confused, but are different as well. Elucidation helps the reader to better understand

183 Chapter 5 facts. Genuine surprise is its source. Anger, admiration, irrefutable conviction from the basis for opinions. Elucidation is a quest for understanding, for knowledge; whereas opinion is the proclamation of truth, is judgmental. An opinion is the subjective assessment of an event or situation.

5.2.4 Opinion Opinion provides an appreciation, a valuation of certain facts. The journalist makes it very clear if the fact is good or bad. The ‘assessment’ of facts and events is the essence of the opinion function. In the case of opinion, the reader wants to know if something is right or wrong. In the case of elucidation, the reader wants to understand why something is the case. Judging belongs to opinion, understanding belongs to elucidation. People that prefer opinion are outspoken. Those who prefer elucidation are curious. They want to understand the ‘how’ no matter how atrocious the facts may be. They do not start pointing fingers, they do not assign guilt to anyone, but they do want to know why. Why did the gangs in Sierra Leone tie the shrivelled skulls of their enemies to their belts? Those who want to elucidate try to find an answer to the question of why people do these things; they want to understand. To try and understand why people act the way they do can be clearly separated from expressing a moral judgment. The public can appreciate the opinion function for different reasons. It can contribute to the formation of their own opinion or take the place of their own already-formed opinion. Some people find it practical to have an opinion if they are asked about an issue when they are at work or somewhere else. At least then they can participate in the conversation. The opinion of a journalist can confirm one’s own opinion. Some people are pleased if they hear or read what they had already thought, especially if the formulation is stronger and more succinct. The opinion of a journalist can influence the behavior of readers. A car test can ensure that a car will or will not be purchased and a review can influence whether or not a film or concert will be seen. Here, the function opinion is presented from a practical perspective.

5.2.5 Advice The advice function makes sure that the readers know how to act in a particular case. The advice function is not geared toward the mere acquisition of knowledge, but connects knowledge to action. Readers

184 A taxonomy of newspaper content want to carry out a dream, they have an objective and want to know how to act. They want to have a list of crucial factors; what is absolutely necessary and what is absolutely necessary to avoid. Thus an article appears in the paper about how to economize during these times of economic stagnation: “thirteen suggestions for easy and effective economizing”. It includes tips such as: “Make a shopping list at home and stick to it while at the store. Try to remember prices as sometimes special offers are not really advantageous or bargains after all. If something is being bought impulsively, try to ask the question: is this purchase really necessary? Can the purchase be put off until later perhaps? Where is the thing going to be stored?"

5.2.6 Emotion “Another thirty seconds.” Concentrated and as relaxed as possible I lead my eight-year-old thoroughbred, Better Times, into the starting box. The man with the stopwatch counts down. “Five, four, three, two, one. Good luck”. Better Times gallops away. Calmly he is guided across the marshy grass to a small forest trail, standing in the stirrups, hovering above the saddle to avoid having so many pounds hit the horse’s back with each stride. After a few slight swerves, the trail is obstructed by two thick tree trunks which are about five feet apart from each other. Each tree trunk rests on two pillars that stick out of the ground; it is an oxer, the first obstacle. The rider sits deep in the saddle, presses his thighs against the horse, stay focussed on the obstacle that is virtually coming towards him. “31 clear over the first obstacle.” The speaker’s voice produces many decibels but the rider does not hear it. Better Times strides towards obstacles two and three, two hills with gates both at the bottom and at the top. Better Times pricks his ears as he sees the first obstacle. The rider lets him know that things are getting serious. The horse jumps the first element, takes four strides up the hill, and then a jump high over the gate on top. The rider sits back, let the reins slip through his fingers, but then take them back to set him up for the next jump. It is already cold and dark when the prizes are given out. Luckily the dignitaries keep their speeches short. “The Champion is Toine Paemen with J. Anck,” the chairman says. “The runner-up is Leon de Wolff with Better Times.” I walk up to receive my award and for the first time in my life I stand on a stage while they play the national anthem.

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It was the writer’s intention that the reader felt the horse and felt the rider’s passion. It is thus the writer’s intention to make certain that the reader feels emotionally involved through what is described. The emotion function always deals with outcome or effect and should not be confused with words and images about emotion. It is very possible to write an emotional article about happiness or sadness; about the loss of someone very close and dear to you; about men, women and children who see death all around them, who suffer from hunger, who are afraid, or who suffer great injustices. But the topic does not determine the function. A highly emotional topic can be treated very factually, and the effect of a story about an apparently plain topic can be highly emotional.

5.2.7 Entertainment He was of the opinion that you should read a newspaper every day. On the other hand he did not find it a catastrophe if one day went by that the paper stayed on the pile ‘to be read’ . The Saturday paper however never belonged to the category of weakness of will. He never wanted to miss the Saturday paper. Never. As a rule, the week-end paper arrived about 1:00 PM and up until the actual arrival of the expected delivery, his ears were fixed on the sound of the rattle of the mailbox. The Saturday paper had, over the years, been transformed into an object of solemn ritual and, as is the case with all rituals, each subsequent Saturday went by in the same, exact order. Phase 1 consisted of pushing aside section 1 of the paper: the news. On Saturday the news was of no importance. There was only one thing on his mind: the cryptogram. The cryptogram is an example of the entertainment function, as is a witty, column, a cartoon, an amusing photograph, or a hilarious one- liner. The entertainment function is the intention of the journalist to entertain. The journalist does not want to inform, he does not want to give facts, overview, elucidation, an opinion or advice. He just wants to make sure that his audience is entertained. Nothing more and nothing less than just that. Humor does not need a topic. In the entertainment function, the topic is of minor importance. Such is not the case with the other functions. The audience does not just want opinion, elucidation, or bare facts. It wants the facts, the elucidation and opinion about a specific topic. With the entertainment function, it is different. It does not matter what the entertainment is

186 A taxonomy of newspaper content about, as long as it leads to entertainment. When the reader has fin- ished the humorous or witty section, he has not learned anything, but he has laughed. Naturally it is very well possible, and sometimes even intentional that in a section which is intended to explain the reasons why certain facts have occurred (the elucidation function) certain sentences show up which do cause a chuckle on the part of the reader. Sentences which stimulate grins and chuckles however do not lead to an actual change in function. The describing of facts or an overview, the providing of elucidation, the passing of judgement on something or emotionally moving a reader can very well happen in sentences in which the public just has to laugh. Making the public laugh is not the actual goal in itself. Fulfilling the fact, overview, elucidation, opinion, advice, or emotion function remains the goal. Only if the designer’s intention is to entertain and amuse his public are we actually speaking of fulfilling the entertainment function. Comical sentences fall under the category of ‘linguistic usage’ and ‘linguistic usage’ is quite different from ‘function’. ‘Linguistic usage’. just as the words already indicate, has to do with the words and the idioms that a journalist chooses and uses. ‘Function’ is the contribution which the journalist makes in order to obtain the result he wants to achieve with his audience. ‘Function’ is concerned with content. ‘Linguistic usage’ concerns itself with form.

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5.3 Perspectives

On September 12, 2001, about 40% of the editorial content of The Times was on the War Against America. One wide-angle photograph showing the burning Twin Towers covered the front page. On page three, the reader could see how people were escaping from the ruins of hell, their heads down, hands or pieces of clothing covering their mouths so that less debris and dust would be inhaled. The headline that covered the entire width of the page read: “She sat at her desk and watched an airliner flying straight at her.” The Times told its readers that “Bush plans to hit back from Nebraska base” and showed a woman whose whole body was completely covered with a thick layer of light grey soot. “Blood shortage as thousands queue to donate,” the headline reported. All of these photos and texts had to do with the attack on the World Trade Center, but each text and each photo was created from a different perspective, from a different point of view. “She sat at her desk and watched an airliner flying straight at her”, tells the story of Mrs. Martolli, what exactly had happened to her, where she was, what she was thinking, what she was feeling. We call this the human perspective. “Bush plans to hit back from Nebraska base” is written through the eyes of a politician or a civil servant. It is written from an institutional perspective. “Blood shortage as thousands queue to donate,” tells what happened that day in American society; it is written from a social point of view. Perspective is the angle from which an issue or an object is viewed. In a figurative sense, perspective is the frame of reference from which a reality is observed. Perspective specifies the type of questions that are asked and the manner in which one gives significance to the facts and events around him. Whoever saw the attack on the World Trade Center from a historical perspective would ask questions such as: What is the history of terrorist attacks on the United States? How often have they happened? Have terrorist methods changed over the course of time? Do the terrorists belong to different groups? Have there been noticeable changes in their motivation? A psychological perspective evaluates the same event from a totally different point of view. A psychologist would ask questions such as: How do you get someone so far so as to literally fly to their death? Why are the terrorists not empathetic or sensitive to the

188 A taxonomy of newspaper content panic and anxiety of the people in the airplane? Does everyone have the potential to be a suicide killer terrorist or do suicide killer terrorists belong to a specific psychological profile? An institutional perspective generates yet another type of question. What are the consequences of such an action on Bush’s domestic policies, the weapon lobby in the United States, national security, and international relations? A different perspective leads to a completely different type of question and thus leads to a totally different text, photo or illustration. It is best to place perspectives in clusters of at least two exclusive perspectives. The perspectives inside a cluster are mutually exclusive. An object cannot be observed from two different positions at the same time. It is not possible to perceive an object or topic from a practical and general perspective, a technical and commercial perspective or a human-oriented or product-oriented perspective all at the same time. The perspectives between clusters are not mutually exclusive. An article that is written from a practical perspective, can indeed be made from all the perspectives contained in the human-oriented cluster, social or institutional cluster. The choice of relevant clusters of perspectives depends upon the manner in which the target group envisions the world. The journalist will have to ask himself or will have to seek out which specific clusters these are and he will have to choose perspectives which are in line with the perspectives that are held by the target group. In this case, the journalist asks the type of questions that the target group would ask itself or wants to ask itself, and he omits, in any case, the type of questions that would not appeal to or would not apply to the target group. The one target group initially wonders what the consequences are of the attack of the World Trade Center on domestic and foreign politics, while another target group does not wonder about that at all. It wonders about, for example, how “things took place for the people that were trapped.” The first case is from an institutional perspective, the second case is from a human-oriented perspective. Contrary to the specified and discussed functions, it is not possible to give a complete run down of all the conceivable perspectives. That would mean after all that it is possible to give an overview of all conceivable questions that people could possibly ask. It is possible to designate the clusters of perspectives which can be expected from a specific type of media, such as news media made up of different parts or news media made up of similar parts.

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Heterogeneous news media such as newspapers, ‘news magazines’, news programs and reality programs, reports about happenings and developments in the unmanifested and the manifested reality. Homo- geneous media divides itself up into media which directs itself towards specific interest areas, activities, values, social position or a specific function. That can vary from sports papers, glossies, travel, healthy living, the over 60s, raising children, to outdoor living, history or gar- dening. For the target groups of newspapers and ‘news magazines’, there seem to be two clusters which are relevant: • Practical and general • Human-oriented, social, and institutional.

5.3.1 Practical and general perspective The practical perspective perceives the world from the angle of people interested in action. Texts or photos which are made from a practical perspective can be used by the reader to base his actions on. The practical perspective leads the target group to ask questions such as: What does that mean for me? What can I get out of it? What good does it do me? If an article or a program answers the question “How can I find out if my family or friends are among the victims of the World Trade Center disaster?” then these texts or photos are construed from the practical perspective. News that two airplanes have flown into the Twin Towers is not. The stockmarket reports, the TV Guide, or the program about interior decorating where a handyman explains how you are supposed to wallpaper your house are all made from a practical perspective. The portrayal of a stockbroker, a story about how a TV program has come to be, and a piece about how a wallpaper factory functions; all are con- ceived from the general perspective. Someone who perceives the world from a general perspective is not just looking for subjective, personal significance, but asks questions which stretch further than just the boundaries of his own existence. Basically, it all comes down to the concept that all texts and photos upon which the actions of the public are not based, belong to the general perspective.

5.3.2 Human, social and institutional perspective A human-oriented perspective always keeps the human psyche in sight. Texts and photos which are created from a people or human perspective try to answer questions which have bearing on the significance for

190 A taxonomy of newspaper content a specific person, what a specific person thinks or feels, how people behave in such a situation. Mrs. Martolli’s report which explained all she had gone through in the World Trade Center disaster plus how she had almost died in it is made from a people-oriented perspective. However, that also applies to stories or pieces that answer the question of how survivors can work through such a catastrophe. The social perspective uses social life as its focus. It is the microscope of the sociologist who wants to know and understand social contexts and connections, such as groups and society. Those who perceive the world through a social perspective are not interested in dealing with the individual or an individual’s personal experience, but are interested in the collective, the social order. Those who ask the question if life has changed in America since September 11 are dealing with the situation from a social perspective. And those who ask themselves what kind of consequences September 11 has had on American politics are dealing with the subject from an institutional perspective. The institutional perspective is the point of view of the political and semi-political administrator who looks for the significance a topic has for administrative and political organizations of the country, such as governments and parliament, advisory boards, negotiation-discussion boards and the organizations of employers and employees.

5.3.2.1 The human perspective At a quarter to nine he woke up, unaware of what had happened to his brother and hundreds of others in New York. His wife and son had climbed into bed with him. The telephone disturbed the peaceful household. David’s mother was calling from Ithaca, a city in up-state New York: “I am very worried about the suicide attack on the World Trade Center.” That is where David’s brother, Jim, worked as vice- president of a large insurance agency. He had not long ago moved his office to the World Trade Center. Potorti saw the smoldering towers. His mother had understood that Jim worked on the 95th floor. “I think back and remember feeling the ground fall out from underneath my feet. I almost had to throw up. Even while I was trying to put my mother at ease I knew that it was hopeless...” Those who perceive a topic from a human perspective are looking for what moves people, what they say, think, feel and do. Those who are looking at a topic from a human perspective do not care, at that moment in any case, about the overall structure or the

191 Chapter 5 overall connection, but are focused on the human condition, suffering, happiness, anxiety, hate, or just mere existence. The human perspective, very similar to the human interest story, is still not the same as the human interest story. Not every story or item which carries the human interest label falls under what we mean here by the human perspective. Every story that seeks to find ‘the person behind the politician’ is called a human interest story. In that context, human interest exists only from one dimension. The human perspective is, on the other hand, a single component of an approach which exists of many dimensions, of functions and as we will see later on, of tone, usage and form. In that context, the reference to ‘human interest’ is much more global because the specification does not say anything about the function of the story or the item. Does it deal with human facts, overview, insight or emotion? A human perspective does not mean ‘an interview’. Not every interview is human-oriented and not every text and photo made from a human perspective is an interview. The fact that in an interview a person is speaking, still does not mean that the questions the interviewer is asking are the consequence of coming from a human perspective. The questions could have just as well come from a social, institutional, occupational, commercial or business perspective, or any other conceivable perspective. Just as an interview does not automatically imply a human perspective, a photo with a person in it is not always human-oriented. We see Andre Agassi in the photo, his left leg forward, right shoulder turned inwards, so that the arm can bring the racket behind the left shoulder, eyes kept on the ball. We see Andre Agassi in the photo on his knees, both arms spread upwards, his head somewhat bent back, tears streaming from his eyes. The first photo is not human-oriented, but it was taken to put the focus on the tennis game. The second photo is human-oriented, and functions with the aim of touching the viewer. A portrayal of Andre Agassi, whether or not it is a text or a photo that is made from a human perspective, can be meant to have the readers or viewers think especially “take a look at what is really going on inside this man”. Human perspective with an emotional function. But the portrayal can also be set up very analytically: How has he stayed motivated all these years? How does he deal with setbacks, with

192 A taxonomy of newspaper content injuries? Functions and perspectives are two totally different concepts in which each has its own logic. The human perspective looks for what is unique in a person. A portrayal from a human perspective describes the specific characteristics of a person, or makes clear why the person is like he is or does what he does. Those who look from a human perspective choose one person over the rest. In this sense the human perspective is just the opposite of the social perspective, which does not choose a single person as the object but a group of people; not the individual but the collective. These are the reasons that it is very possible to make a portrayal of one person from both a human as well as a social perspective. The questions in the first case are intended to figure out who the person is, how this person has developed, or why this person is like he is. The questions in the second case are intended to figure out what type of people the group consists of from which this person is a part. The questions are not based on curiosity about the person but about the group that the person comes from. This does not mean that a human perspective approach is always concentrated on an existing person. People in general can also be the object of a human perspective. In that case it deals more specifically with a psychological view of people; not people collectively but as individuals, the individual as an abstraction. The story that answers the question of how one processes a great loss is from a human perspective but is not aimed at just one person specifically.

5.3.2.2 The social perspective The scoreboard of the public broadcasting company had already made it clear, early in the evening of May 15th, that the murdered candidate Pim Fortuyn would gain a non-specified large number of seats in the Dutch Lower House and that the Dutch Labor Party would see its number of seats cut in half. There were opinions everywhere here about what the consequences of this outcome would be. Who was going to govern? Who would be ruled out? Was it really going to make a difference? How long would a new coalition last? It is the questions that politicians themselves ask, the interest of administrators. We call this the institutional perspective. The journalist who perceives the Lower House elections from an institutional perspective looks for political consequences, asks for reactions from politicians and tries to find out what the mood is like in Parliament.

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Some newspapers and programs let arbitrarily chosen people from all over the country say how difficult they found it to vote; if they indeed had finally voted; if not, then why they had not voted; and if they had voted based on the wishes of someone else. On top of that, the papers and programs also tried to explain why The Netherlands had massively voted for a party which only a few months before the election had not even existed. The journalist who wanders about the country, looks around him, asks himself what has motivated people to do what they have done and then carefully notes his findings is approaching the Dutch Lower House elections from a social perspective. Those who perceive the election from a social perspective would ask themselves why approximately 1.6 million Dutch people voted for a different party than the time before and the time before that. Those who consider a topic from a social perspective would narrow in on social relationships, how they are, why they are the way they are and the resulting consequences. The social perspective is the view of the sociologist. The social perspective narrows in on the street, the family, the community, the town, the country, the young, the elderly. In a nutshell it narrows in on all social contexts such as groups, factions and categories. It would be a misunderstanding to believe that the social perspective is only reserved for topics which present themselves as social. Any topic can be approached from any perspective. Of course certain topics can imply a certain perspective, but that is not anything more than an implication. Political and government topics which take place in the world imply an institutional approach, but it is very well possible to approach these topics from a social point of view. In that case, the political struggle is not the primary focal point, but the social consequences of political decisions, the social problems resulting from a topic that politicians have placed on the political agenda. The social perspective is a frame of reference, a manner of approaching a topic. It is not a function and it does not dictate what a certain text or photo must evoke in a person.

5.3.2.3 The institutional perspective The institutional perspective is the frame of reference of administration, of politics, of heads and subordinates of social organizations, of umbrella organizations, of unions; basically of everyone who is a big-

194 A taxonomy of newspaper content shot or who wants to become one. The institutional perspective leads to such questions as: What has the administrator decided? What is the institution’s point of view? What measures is the institution taking? What is on the institution’s agenda? Why have the administrators chosen to take a certain standpoint? How has the decision making process been arrived at? It is not always simple for the journalist to determine if the questions that arise from an institutional perspective are questions that the public would ask or if they are mainly questions which occur to the involved journalist himself. Again and again the journalist must take into consideration just exactly who he is doing his work for; and time and time again he has to put himself into the shoes of his public. He must ask himself how much relevancy his public would find in the questions he is bringing up. Particularly the questions which occur from an institutional frame of reference can be difficult. In the first place because the journalist who is reporting on the world of administration does not hear anything else other than questions which come from the administration’s view. That is inevitable. It cannot be any other way. Someone who has been working in The Hague for years, and who for ages has been attending the meetings of the local council, becomes like a part of the town furnishings. The questions which specialized journalists ask themselves become more and more like the questions the institution asks - an institution of which they, bit by bit, are becoming a part of. The editor-in-chief says: “The problem with John is that he knows exactly what’s going on, but he doesn’t write it down because he doesn’t want to disturb the good relationship he has with his sources.” The problem with John is that he has for so long catered to the administrative position that he is going to think like an administrator and simply cannot imagine that his public thinks about it totally differently.

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5.3.3 More perspectives He is the owner of a tree nursery and has been for 23 years. He lives for his trees, knows everything about them, not just about the different species and variations, but also about the different techniques for growing and cultivating them. As soon as a new technique has been thought up in a university, he is always the first one to try it out. He gets excited if there is an article in his favorite magazine about an experiment in Sweden or Canada. He is a specialist, an expert, and he wants to read articles which are written from a specialist’s perspective. The specialist-oriented perspective is the point of view of the specialist or expert in terms of carrying out his specialty or expertise. Specialists are primarily interested in the content of their specialty or expertise and ask questions related to specialty developments and also specialty problems. They want to read about the newest technique; they want to know how this new technique works and how they can achieve the best results. The construction of an automatic milking machine for cows, the preparation of self-rising flour, the specifications of a support beam, the decrees of the High Council, the protocol for the removal of an infected appendix. These are all issues that belong to the specialty- oriented perspective. There are also tree cultivators who see their nurs- eries specifically as a business in which they can earn money. They do not live for the trees, but from the trees. They are not so interested in all these cultivation techniques. They already have someone for that. Someone who knows everything about growing trees. If they open their favorite magazine and read an article about a new technique, their first questions would be “how much does it cost” and “what kind of profit could be achieved”. They look at tree cultivation from a commercial point of view. The commercial perspective is the point of view of the businessman who orients his questions almost exclusively to what can be financially earned by this new technique; what the new technique will cost and what that cost will manifest in profits. And then there are the tree cultivators’ managers. They want to make sure that things run in an efficient and effective manner. Their goal is to achieve a balance between a specialist-oriented and a commercial perspective by making sure that the people that grow and cultivate the trees and those that sell them know what they are doing and that they have the opportunity and the means to manifest these goals. The business perspective aspect is the manager’s point of view. The manager himself is constantly looking for solutions on how to integrate the new

196 A taxonomy of newspaper content cultivation techniques in the organization. Managers are interested in questions and solutions which pertain to running the business and its manifestation. The practical perspective leads to texts and photos where the per- tinence can be based on dealing with the public. That is not the case with general perspective. An article which discusses what you can do about the most commonly occurring tree disease is written from a practical perspective. A documentary which is situated in the Rus- sian Urals would leave the specialist tree cultivator and grower who absolutely lives for his trees standing there open-mouthed. But that sort of documentary would not be considered very practical. Just as the social, human and institution cluster, the practical and general cluster is, for many targeted groups, extremely relevant. As far as the majority of media consumers is concerned, it really would not be crazy to ask the question if the public would appreciate reading an article or seeing items which could help them with everyday practicalities. Perhaps the answer would be “sometimes” or “yes, definitely”, but the probability of hearing “no” really would not be very high.

5.4 Areas of interest

What is a subject? “Bush wants more money for defense” is about a different subject than “Nadal is not at the Australian Open.” The first is about politics. The second about sports. But are sports and politics the subject, or Bush and Nadal, or politics and sports, or American politics and tennis? If you want to find out what subjects audiences are interested in, the list of possibilities is impossible to make. A more practical approach is to cluster the subjects in groups we call ‘areas of interest’. An area of interest is a collection of subjects that are interrelated. Areas of interest are domains that readers would like to read about. A general newspaper covers areas of interest like sports, art, economy, health care, the environment, mobility, politics, technology and travel. Over the course of time, areas of interest have been institutionalized. As a result, readers expect from newspapers that certain areas of interest will be covered and journalists assume that they have to cover those institutionalized areas of interest. In the article with the headline “Bush wants more money for defense”, we read that the American president wants to increase the defense

197 Chapter 5 budget by $48 billion. Another article explains why the president says that he needs this money to fight terrorism and why Congress, including the Republicans, is very skeptical about this plan. Describing the subject can be a matter of abstraction. The most general abstraction is the notion ‘areas of interest’. In the Bush example: politics. ‘Subject groups’, specify the areas of interest. So the area of interest ‘politics’ can be divided into subject groups like party politics, local politics, foreign politics, defense, education, or health care. A subject group like foreign politics can be split into specific topics like Eastern Europe or South America. As we have shown, the difference between the three concepts is a matter of abstraction.

5.5 The matrix

Combining seven functions with four perspectives we will have an overview of 28 different story angles. We call it the story matrix. Each combination connects to a different type of virtual question. As a result, the matrix not only helps the producer of newspapers to stay focused, but is also of assistance in that the matrix helps the designer to formulate functional questions. We use this taxonomy to describe readers’ preferences. This taxonomy itself has two functions: it makes it possible to put different types of content into words and it generates story angles. On the next page we will use nanotechnology as an example. The institutional, scientific, human and social and perspectives are represented in the columns, the functions - bare facts, overview, elucidation, opinion, advice, emotion, and entertainment in the rows. Each cell contains a unique virtual question. Of course it is not the only question possible. It requires the expertise of the journalist to formulate the questions. We want to emphasize that the questions in the cells of the matrix that follows are merely examples. Examples of what can be called a heuristic aid, a taxonomy that stimulates its user to come up with virtual questions. The taxonomy shows that it is possible to be specific about content differences on the basis of a limited set of criteria: areas of interest, functions and perspectives

198 A taxonomy of newspaper content

Table 14: Matrix of functions and perspectives Nanotechnology Institutional Scientific Human 1 2 3 What is the official What is molecular Who is one of the inventors of Bare facts nanotechnology policy in the technology/ nanotechnology? Who is Eric Netherlands? nanotechnology? Drexler? 5 6 7 Which governmental How did How did Eric deal with Overview regulations stimulate or stall nanotechnology scepticism and enthusiasm in the development? develop? designing nanotechnology? 9 10 11 Why is the government How can nanotechnology Why didn’t the inventor of Elucidation doing what it’s doing? transform science? nanotechnology quit? 13 14 15 Is the nanotechnology policy What is the What is the journalist’s Opinion of the Dutch government journalist’s opinion on opinion of Eric Drexler? right or wrong? nanotechnology? 17 18 29 How can subsidies be What kind of products will What can you do if nobody Advice obtained for developing new be totally transformed in believes in your project? technology? the near future? 21 22 23 What are the dilemmas in What is the passion for What has been Eric Drexler’s Emotion designing nano technology nanotechnology? struggle? policy?

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Section II

The empirical section

Chapter 6 Empirical set-up Chapter 6

In this chapter we formulate the hypothes es and try to explain how we organize the s tudy: the ins truments of datacollection, the methods we us e to analyze the data and the definition of the population to collect the data from.

m ethods to ins truments to population to collect analyze and collect data data from des cribe data

s urvey res ults : o n l i ne s u r v e y s urvey 1 n = 4.155 percentages , correlations s urvey 2 n = > 1.600 binary logis tic regres s ion inhabitants of the s urvey 3 n = 2.500 analys is Netherlands older content analys is than 13 years of age completes will be content analys is : s elected s o that taxonomy of news paper s ubs cribers of dis tribution of age, content news papers gender, education and location s ubs cribers of corres pond with the 'quality papers ' figures of the C entral B ureau of S tatis tics

hypothes es

1.Primary news paper functions have an impact on news paper loyalty. 8.Tradition has a s ignificant impact 2.S econdary news paper functions on news paper loyalty. have an impact on news paper loyalty. 9.Affective variables contribute 3.The number of people that can s ignificantly to the explanation articulate their news paper of news paper loyalty. preferences exceeds the 11.Price has a s ignificant impact number of people that cannot. on news paper loyalty. 4.The number of people who 12.Free papers have a s ignificant impact on act according to their as pirations news paper loyalty. exceeds the number of people 13.Medium preference has a s ignificant who do not. impact on news paper loyalty. 5.C ognitive variables contribute 14.Delivery has a s ignificant impact s ignificantly to the explanation on news paper loyalty. of news paper loyalty. 15.Time s pent reading has a s ignificant impact 6.The brand of a news paper on news paper loyalty. has a s ignificant impact on 16.Overwhelming media s upply has news paper loyalty. a s ignificant impact on news paper loyalty. 7. The habit of buying a news paper has a 17.The layout of a news paper has s ignificant impact on news paper loyalty. a s ignificant impact on the perception on news paper s upply.

204 Empirical set-up

6.0 Introduction

This chapter serves five objectives. (1) To describe the instruments of data collection (2) To show the methods used to analyze and describe the survey results. (3) To show the population we collect the data from. (4) To describe the hypotheses that will be tested. (5) To describe how the variables derived from the conceptual model were operationalized into a questionnaire.

205 Chapter 6

6.1 Research set-up and hypotheses

A sample of the population of the Netherlands older than 13 years was asked questions about the variables derived from the triad cognitive/ rational, affective/emotional and conative/circumstantial. The questions were about content preference, perceived supply, fuzzy demand, aspiration and behavior, brand score, habit, tradition, medium preference, price, free paper, delivery and time – how much time one spends reading a newspaper and the question how much time there is to read a newspaper We will refer to this survey as Survey 1. (n = over 4.100) The same questions were asked to a sample of the population of national newspaper readers in order to boost the amount of completes of national newspapers. Survey 2. (n = over 1,600) A sample of the population of the Netherlands older than 13 years was asked questions about the impact of layout on the perception of newspaper supply. Survey 3. (n = over 2,500). This could not be done in survey 1, because in that case the time respondents had to spend completing the questionnaire would exceed the admissible amount. The survey’s questionnaire contains two groups of questions. a) Questions that tell us more about the subscribers’ profile b) Questions that are derived from the conceptual model. These two types of questions were not assigned to separate sections in the questionnaire, because the structure of the questionnaire was determined by the perceived attractiveness to the respondent and not by its question type. The first seven questions are about the respondent’s personal characteristics such as gender and age. It was necessary to know at the beginning of the survey if the respondent ever looks in a paper and, if so, which paper he or she reads most; how often does the respondent read this newspaper; does he or she ever buy the paper; if the respondent has a subscription, if the respondent reads any other paid paper or free paper, including a home delivered paper. The two tables show an overview of the questionnaire by question number and by question type.

206 Empirical set-up

Table 15 questionnaire set-up question number group of questions question type 1-7 newspaper readers respondent characteristics 24 political preference respondent characteristics 68 political preference respondent characteristics 25-29 weakness of will respondent characteristics 33 fuzzy demand respondent characteristics 59-61 global satisfaction respondent characteristics 62-67 background variables respondent characteristics 8-12 newspaper loyalty dependent variable 13-23 primary function rational variables 37-40 secondary functions rational variables 41-42 habit & tradition affective variables 45-52 brand affective variables 53-58 medium preference affective variables 30-32 time spent reading conative variables 34-36 delivery conative variables 43-44 price conative variables 69 possible respondent remarks

Table 16 questionnaire set-up question number group of questions question type 1-7 newspaper readers respondent characteristics 8-12 newspaper loyalty dependent variable regression analysis 13-23 primary function rational variables 24 political preference respondent characteristics 25-29 weakness of will rational variables 30-32 time spent reading conative variables circumstantial variable 33 fuzzy demand conative variables circumstantial variable 34-36 delivery conative variables circumstantial variable 37-42 secondary functions rational variables 43-44 price conative variables circumstantial variable 45-52 brand affective variables 53-58 medium preference affective variables 59-61 global satisfaction respondent characteristics 62-67 background variables respondent characteristics 68 political preference respondent characteristics 69 possible respondent remarks

207 Chapter 6

In the conceptual model the concepts that were used in testing the hypotheses are visualized. The core of the model consists of three different approaches that could explain newspaper loyalty: the triad cognitive, affective and conative; also labeled as analytical, holistic and situational; or known as rational, experiential and action-oriented. It is confusing to call the basic elements of the conceptual model a model as well. However it is common practice to refer to those approaches as models too: the cognitive, affective and conative model, also referred to as the rational, emotional and circumstantial model, and the analytical, holistic and practical model. The conceptual model encompasses these three models. In predicting newspaper loyalty we did not want to exclude variables that are linked to the three sub-models. We will refer to those variables as rational, affective and conative variables, A multiple logistic regression analysis was used to explain newspaper loyalty. Newspaper loyalty is the dependent variable. Primary function, secondary function, brand, habit, tradition, medium preference, price, time, delivery, overwhelming media supply and free newspapers are the independent variables. Logistic regression analysis shows the relative contribution of each variable to the explanation of newspaper loyalty. It shows if a variable makes a difference at all and it shows the relative contribution of a variable. A content analysis of all national newspapers during a week will be held in order to know what is the actual supply. For reasons of comparison, the issues of the same week will be analyzed for all the titles. A taxonomy of newspaper content has been developed (chapter 5) that enables the researcher to describe newspaper content. Because of the availability of this taxonomy the respondents could describe the content they prefer and perceive. The engagement potential ratings scale of the Gallup organization measures the power of the brand title. It produces a brand score that enables comparison between titles and subscribers as far as their appreciation of the newspaper brand is concerned. It is reasonable to assume that one takes a subscription to a quality paper because of the content of its articles and pictures. We consider NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant, nrc.next and Trouw to be quality papers. We define quality paper as a paper that pays more attention to the complexity of its content. It looks at social reality from many perspectives instead of one. It considers the world as basically

208 Empirical set-up non-transparent and multi-dimensional. According to a quality paper paradoxes, dilemmas and ambiguities are more a rule than an exception. If the quality of the content is the reason for having a subscription, we may expect that the influence of newspaper content on newspaper loyalty is more important for the readers of quality papers than for all papers together. It is also to be expected that editorial content is one of the most important variables explaining newspaper-loyalty. Therefore the regression analysis was repeated for a population of only quality subscribers. As a proxy for loyalty, we will ask subscribers whether they considered ending their subscription (question 8). In the following paragraphs we formulate the hypotheses that are to be tested. The variables are classified according to the triad cognitive/ rational, affective/emotional and conative/circumstantial.

6.1.1 The rational variables This study is about testing the assumption that newspaper readers in general and newspaper subscribers in particular do not get the kind of articles they would like to read and do not get the photos they want to see and because of this mismatch they end their subscription. Actually there are two assumptions: (1) we assume there is a mismatch, (2) we assume that a mismatch causes exit. As we mentioned before McQuail rightly pointed out that there is an “intrinsic difficulty in finding an appropriate, shared and communi- cable language or terminology for expressing and recording ideas about motives, gratification, uses and so forth.”237 In order to unveil newspaper preferences the first thing we did was try to create such a language. As shown in chapters four and five, the difference between stories and images is their function. The preferences of the newspaper reader are reflected in the way the functions are distributed. In order to establish that distribution, a taxonomy of newspaper content has been constructed. This taxonomy helps to describe the reader’s preferences and the newspaper’s supply. A distinction is made between primary and secondary functions. The primary function consists of seven specific functions, a cluster of three perspectives, one cluster of two, a set of nineteen areas of interest and a set of three. As was elaborated in chapter five, the seven newspaper functions enable the newspaper readers to acquaint themselves:

209 Chapter 6

N E W S P a pe r l o ya l t y

c o g n it iv e c o n a t iv e a f f e c t iv e A N A L Y T IC A L C IR C U M S T A N T IA L H O L IS T IC R A T IO N A L P R A C T IC A L E M O T IO N A L

F r e e h a bit & P r ic e D e l iv e r y F U N C T IO N S B R A N D pa pe r s T R A D IT IO N

M E D IU M T ime s pe n t O V E R W H E L M IN G P R E F E R E N C E r e a d in g N E W S S U P P L Y

P r ima r y S e c un d a r y f un c t io n s f un c t io n s l a y-o u t

a r ea s o f s o c ia l in t er es t pr in t o n l in e

functions cultural t ex t a ud io

perspectives psycholo- video gical IM A G E S

text

fuzzy W E KNE S S OF will demand IM A G E S

(1) with isolated facts (2) with facts that are put into context (3) With information that answered the question why the facts are the case (4) With an opinion about the facts (5) With advice (6) With information that sees to it that the reader is emotionally involved (7) With the information that sees to it that the reader is amused.

Choosing a different perspective also changes the rationale of the story or the photograph. A story that is written from a human perspective is different from a story written from an institutional perspective, even if the area of interest of both stories is the same. As was also explained in chapter five we distinguished nineteen areas of interests such as politics, education, celebrities, sports or disasters. One way of finding what explains newspaper loyalty is to compare the preferences of subscribers with the preferences of people that end their subscription. The advantage of this procedure is that the possible discrepancy between behavior and statements about behavior will be

210 Empirical set-up avoided. It is highly possible that people may end their subscription despite the fact that they have said to keep it or they keep their newspaper subscription contrary to the fact that they have said to end it. If you want to know how people behave you do not ask them how they behave, but you look at them when they behave. It is very tempting to follow this approach but harsh reality prevents realizing what seems to be the preferable. Unfortunately it is not possible. In order to make the comparison between demand and supply we need to find a sufficient group of people that have ended their subscription. And this appeared not possible. Luckily there is an alternative and careful scrutiny brings us to the conclusion that this alternative is even preferable. Newspaper loyalty is more than keeping a subscription. A subscriber is not really loyal if he toys with the idea of ending his subscription. If you are loyal you would not consider walking away. The option does not even cross your mind. It is true that a reader can keep his subscription despite the fact that he says he is cancelling it, but even in this case the reader has thought of the possibility of ending it and therefore he is considered not to be loyal. Next to the question of what newspaper loyalty is and how it is measured there is the question of what causes newspaper loyalty, the main question of this study. Common knowledge would suggest that readers stay loyal if demand meets supply. The subscribers expect a particular content from their paper and reading the newspaper their expectations are met. The more the readers think their newspaper fulfills the functions they want to be fulfilled, the greater the chance of them remaining loyal. The perception of a match causes loyalty; the perception of mismatch causes disloyalty. We speak of a match when readers are of the opinion that the content of the paper matches their preferences. To determine if this is the case we must know the readers’ preferences. We measured the readers’ preferences by asking them what they consider to be the best mix of areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives. The selected newspaper readers are asked to distribute a hundred points. In the case of the areas of interest, respondents are asked to distribute the points over 19 different areas. The same kind of question was asked about seven specific functions and about a cluster of two and one of three perspectives. The idea behind this approach is that this method forces the respondents to be specific about their relative preference. The emphasis is here is on relative. Because the respondents

211 Chapter 6 are asked to distribute a hundred points the preferences are relative, which is more realistic than an absolute answer. In the real world, a reader does not prefer to read articles about only one area of interest, but about a mix. The same could be said about articles with a specific function and a particular perspective. If asked a question like are you interested in reading about the following areas of interest and the answer could be on a five point scale, the information stays more general, not to say superficial, than if respondents are asked in several questions to distribute a hundred points over nineteen areas of interest, about seven functions, and about, in total, five preferences. Online research makes it possible to show the respondent a counter so he can keep track of how many points he can still allocate. We assume that a mismatch between the perceived newspaper content and the content a reader prefers to read causes newspaper disloyalty. It is crucial to compare preference with the perception of supply, because it is not the actual supply that influences a reader but the supply as the reader perceives it. However, this hypothesis assumes that newspaper content has an impact on newspaper loyalty. This assumption may seem obvious, but it is no more than an assumption and therefore ready to test. We make a distinction between the primary and secondary functions. The primary functions are about the newspaper’s content. The secondary functions are about what the paper does to the reader psychologi- cally, socially and culturally. The primary functions are in accordance with the intention of the designer; the secondary functions are only assigned by the user. Primary functions are measured with questions 13 through 22. Ques- tions 13, 15, 17, 19 and 21 measure demand, questions 14, 16, 18, 20 and 22 measure perception of supply. To obtain one variable expressing the mismatch between demand and perception, we subtracted demand from perception, yielding the mismatch on every aspect of the primary functions. When for instance a subscriber wants 20 percent of the content to be about politics and he thinks that 30 percent of the content is about politics, the mismatch is 10 percent. We then added up all the separate aspects into one variable expressing the total level of mismatch. In this operation we ignored the sign of the difference, because both too much or too little supply constitutes a mismatch.

212 Empirical set-up

Hypothesis 1. Primary functions have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty. Secondary functions, can be divided in psychological secondary functions, social and cultural secondary functions. The psychological secondary functions are measured with statements 40.3, 37.4, 38.4, 39.4 and 40.5 in the questionnaire. Respondents scored the statements with a 5-scale measure. To obtain a single variable expressing the scores of respondents on this concept, we added up the scores on the statements into one variable. The measurement consistency of the statements will be determined by calculating the Cronbach’s alpha for the set of statements, which is fairly good with an alpha of .770. The social secondary functions consist of 12 statements (37.0, 38.0, 38.1, 39.1, 40.1, 37.2, 39.2, 40.2, 37.3, 38.3, 39.3, 40.4), which are scored by respondents on a 5-point scale. We added up the scores on these statements into one variable. The reliability of the scale will be measurement with Cronbach’s alpha.

Hypothesis 2. Secondary functions have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

A rational way of decision making assumes that readers are capable of articulating what they want. Is this the case? If it is, the number of people that are able to put into words what they want exceeds the number of people that do not.

Hypothesis 3. The number of people that can articulate their newspaper preferences exceeds the number of people that cannot.

A rational way of decision making assumes that readers are eager to read the articles they prefer the most. Critics will stress the fact that readers often start to read something else instead. In chapter three, we labeled this phenomenon the weakness of will.

Hypothesis 4. The number of people who act according to their aspirations exceeds the number of people who do not.

213 Chapter 6

The dominant underlying assumption of this functional method is that newspaper readers use reason; they are rational in choosing the newspaper of their preference. It is even tacitly assumed that the decision to read a newspaper at all is the result of a rational process of decision making. It is one of the objectives of this study to find out if it really is the case that people make a list of the kind of articles they would like to read and images they want to see and compare that list with what they think is supplied: a rational way of making a purchase decision. So the first group of hypotheses tests the assumption that buying a newspaper, or keeping a newspaper subscription is a rational affair.

Hypothesis 5 Cognitive variables contribute significantly to the explanation of newspaper loyalty .

The table below is an overview of the questions in the questionnaire that assume a rational explanation of newspaper loyalty. The table also shows how the variables are operationalized into survey questions.

214 Empirical set-up

Table 17 COGNITIVE, ANALYTICAL, RATIONAL VARIABLES Conceptual model Questionnaire This is a list of topics that can be found in the newspaper. Are there any topics that are usually skipped? Here is a list with areas of interest that could be covered in your paper. Are there any items you usually skip? How much do you want to read about the following subjects? Primary functions How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to the subjects in the following list? What must the distribution of local news, national news and world news be? How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to local news, news about the Netherlands and world news? The questions above are asked for two clusters of areas of interest, seven specific functions and two clusters of perspectives. What is your opinion on the statements below concerning paid newspapers? People that are important to me would be surprised if I did not read a newspaper. By reading a paper, I feel more connected to my environment. Having a newspaper gives people esteem. People that are important to me think that you ought to read a newspaper. Reading a newspaper means that I can focus on something else for a moment. I would be confronted by people that are important to me if I never read a newspaper. Reading a newspaper makes me more interesting to other people. Reading a paper enables people to participate in the talk of the day. I read a newspaper because it is my civic duty to inform myself with news and background information. Reading a newspaper is one of the pleasant moments of the day. Secondary functions Sometimes I talk to friends, family or colleagues about articles I read in the paper. Reading a newspaper gives people the feeling that they belong to something. People like to show others that they read a newspaper. Everybody ought to read a newspaper. Reading a newspaper is a pleasant way to fill an empty moment. I sometimes consult family, friends, or colleagues about what I read in the paper. People who do not read a newspaper risk others considering them stupid. People that are important to me think that you need to read a newspaper to know what is happening in the world. The reading of a newspaper enables me to relax and detach from daily occupations. I think that I have failed if I do not read a newspaper. Reading a newspaper makes me feel good. I read the same kind of newspapers I was brought up with.

215 Chapter 6

It can sometimes happen that you want to do something that you think is really important, but when the moment arrives, you do not do it. This could happen when you read a newspaper; you do not always start reading the article you should read first. Weakness of Do you recognize this feeling? will Respondents who responded with yes are asked: Mark three subjects you should start reading first and mark three subjects you actually start reading first as a rule. The two lists could be the same, but that is not necessary the case.

Which statement do you agree most with? • I know what I want to read in the newspaper and I can put these preferences into words. • I know what I want to read in the newspaper but I find it difficult to put these preferences Fuzzy need into words. • Only if I have a newspaper in front of me I know what I want to read. • I have no particular preferences about what I want to read in the newspaper.

6.2 The affective variables

The functional approach assumes that readers of a newspaper have preferences and are aware of their preferences. It is assumed that newspaper readers are active; as if they undertake an empirical investigation of the newspaper and compare supply with demand in a way that is absolutely meticulous. The functional approach is rational in the sense that one acts according to a reasoning based on transparent assumptions and a clear representation of facts. The functional approach assumes that the decision to be a loyal subscriber is the result of a cognitive process. Yet - as was stated before - it is possible that this is not the case. We should consider the possibility that the rationale is not cognitive and analytical, but affective and holistic. In that case, readers do not reason using logical argumentation based on objective data. Reasoning takes time, it takes an effort, it takes specific skills. The affective way of coming to a newspaper purchase is made in a split second, based on newspaper brand, habit and tradition. Readers do not try and grasp the details of what is offered. They do not focus on the specific functions of the newspaper, but they experience the product and construct an image. The approach is not analytical, but holistic; not rational, but affective.

216 Empirical set-up

6.2.1 Brand score Brand is a concept that is closely linked to an affective way of consumer decision. The purchase of a brand is an affective affair. “Branding is not only about ubiquity, visibility and functions; it is about bonding emotionally with people in their daily lives. Only when a product or a service kindles an emotional dialogue with the consumer, can this product or service qualify to be a brand”.238 Brand is measured using the engagement potential ratings scale of the Gallup organization.239 Respondents could strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree with the statements that measured brand image. The range of possible results was therefore defined by two extremes: strongly agree or strongly disagree. In order to determine how the answers are distributed between those extremes we quantified them: strongly agree=2, strongly disagree=-2, agree=1, disagree=-1. Adding up the results of the ten statements gives the number we call the brand score. To define a different attitude towards the brand of a national newspaper we distinguished four types of newspaper readers, based on their brand score. The statements correspond to questions 45.0 to 45.9 in the questionnaire. The scores (ranging from +2 to -2) on each statement are added up to create one variable with scores ranging from +30 to -30.

Brand score 20 Very strong 10 Weak 15 Strong 5 Very weak

Hypothesis 6. The brand of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

6.2.2 Habit & tradition Reading a newspaper out of habit is not an act of analytical reflection. It is not the result of a conscious choice. It is not to be considered as behavior that is planned. Habit is a recurring act that is triggered by a past performance: a particular place, a particular person. An act that happens out of habit occurs without weighing up the pros and the cons against each other. Habit is part of a daily routine. Wood uses the word automaticity.240 Our objective was to construct a scale with as few statements as possible. Ultimately we decided to use four: a statement about routine,

217 Chapter 6 a statement that relates habit to a particular time, a statement about the priority and one about the importance of reading a newspaper. We distinguished habit from ritual and tradition. Habit lacks the symbolic element that is the essential dimension in the concept of ritual. Tradition has a broad time span that includes socialization. Habit will be measured by letting respondents score four statements on a 5-point scale. The consistency will be measured with Cronbach’s alpha The scores (ranging from +2 to -2) are added up to yield one variable. The scores of the individual statements are added up, rendering one score for habits and one for tradition. The habit scores, as well as the scores for tradition, are split into four categories: very strong, strong, weak and very weak.

Hypothesis 7 The habit of buying a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty

Reading a newspaper because of tradition is not the result of a conscious choice either. If tradition is at stake, there is no need for contemplation as the act of buying a newspaper is self-evident, “it goes without saying”, “I learned it growing up”. At this point we arrived at the core of the difference between tradition and habit. Tradition is a social and cultural phenomenon whereas habit lingers in the personal sphere. Tradition is learned during the process of institutionalization and socialization. It is passed on from one generation to another. Whereas habit is a broader concept that is not necessarily linked to the values and norms of a particular group or category. An individual can pick up a habit just because he gets used to a particular behavior. The impact of tradition may change over time and place. Differences among individuals may correlate with generation and reference group. Specific groups or categories are more or less influenced by tradition than other groups or categories. Tradition will be measured by letting respondents score two statements (42.0 and 42.1) on a 5-point scale. The consistency is fairly high with an alpha of .702. The scores (ranging from +2 to -2) are added up to yield one variable.

Hypothesis 8. Tradition has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

218 Empirical set-up

The table below is an overview of the questions in the questionnaire that made it possible to investigate whether affective variables contribute to the explanation of newspaper loyalty and if so to what degree. The table also shows how the variables are operationalized into survey question

Table 18 Holistic, affective, experiential variables Variable QUESTIONNAIRE ## is a newspaper you can always trust. ## always gives what it promises. I know where ## stands for. I know the difference between ## and other newspapers. Brand ## sets the standard. There is no other newspaper like ##. I cannot imagine a world without ##. Subscribers speak highly of the quality of ##. ## is perfect for people like me. Of all the information I get during the day, most often, the first thing I do is read a paper. Habit It rarely happens that I skip reading a newspaper. Reading a newspaper is part of my daily routine. I always read a newspaper at the same moment of the day. I read a newspaper because I got used to it when I was young. Tradition I read the same kind of newspapers I was brought up with. ## refers to the newspaper the respondent considers as his or hers main paper

Hypothesis 9 Affective variables contribute significantly to the explanation of newspaper loyalty .

219 Chapter 6

6.3 The conative variables

The third group of hypotheses tests the assumption that buying a newspaper, or keeping a newspaper subscription is primarily determined by variables that refer to practical circumstances. Can I afford this paper: price. Are their alternatives for a paid newspaper like free papers? Is the paper always delivered on time? Do I have the time to read a newspaper? It is a widespread belief among the students of newspaper economics that the price of a newspaper is inelastic.241 The demand of newspapers wasn’t sensitive to its price. A lower price did not cause a circulation increase, a higher price did not cause a drop in circulation. Most of the studies were undertaken one, or two decades ago. In the meantime the media landscape changed. It is conceivable that as a result the elasticity changed as well.

Hypothesis 10. The price of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

It is believed that free papers have no impact on the circulation of paid papers. However, there is no empirical study that shows the absence of a correlation. The studies are an interpretation of the circulation figures. Logistic regression analysis shows if free papers contribute to newspaper loyalty and if so how much and to what direction. This variable was measured using statements 43.0 and 43.1 in the questionnaire. The two statements are scored on a 5-point scale and added up to obtain a single variable; a Cronbach’s alpha will show its reliability.

Hypothesis 11. Free papers have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Medium preference can be the result of a general preference of one medium to the other. This is the case e.g. if a consumer rather watches television than read a paper, or rather surf the Internet than watch TV. Medium preference can also be the result of a specific preference of one medium to the other. This is the case e.g. if a consumer rather watches sports on television than read about sport in a paper. We will measure both types. We ask the respondents which medium they prefer if there

220 Empirical set-up is only one to choose. We ask the respondents too what medium they prefer if they are to be informed about a particular area of interest, a particular function or a particular perspective. This variable was measured using statements 44.0, 44.1 and 44.2 in the questionnaire. These statements are scored on a 5-point scale and added up to obtain a single variable with a Cronbach’s alpha will show its reliability. The general media preference was also measured by four statements on the Internet as an alternative to newspapers, corresponding to questions 58.0, 58.2, 58.4 and 58.5 in the questionnaire. Again the consistency of the scale will be measured with Cronbach’s alpha. The scores on the 5-point scale of each statement (ranging from +2 to -2) were added up into one variable. Specific medium preference will be measured by letting respondents choose their preferred medium for all the aspects of primary functions (33 in total). The amount of times Internet was chosen for these aspects was then added up to yield a variable that expresses the proportion of specific content that respondents choose to obtain through Internet instead of newspapers.

Hypothesis 12. Medium preference has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Newspaper companies consider bad delivery as one of the main reasons for a subscriber to cancel the subscription. The companies spend lots of time and money to improve the delivery quality. As a proxy for consistency of delivery we asked respondents to state the number of times their subscription newspaper was not delivered in the past 6 months (statement 35 in the questionnaire). This stated number of non-deliveries was then used in our model, during the week and in the weekend respectively. To obtain the total amount of time spent reading, we added up these statements, yielding a single variable that we used in the model.

Hypothesis 13. The delivery of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Statements 30 and 31 in the questionnaire ask respondents to state the amount of time they spent reading their subscription newspaper on average during the week and in the weekend respectively. To obtain

221 Chapter 6 the total amount of time spent reading, we added up these statements, yielding a single variable that we used in the model.

Hypothesis 14. Time spent reading has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Cable, Internet, particularly the social media contribute to a sentiment of an overwhelming news supply that is impossible to catch up with. This can result in an attitude of detachment with what is going on. The argument is that it is not possible to follow the news, because the magnitude of the news makes it impossible to find enough time. People find themselves in a situation where there is less free time, but there is more news and more news sources. Statements 32.0, 32.3, 32.4, 32.5, 32.6, 32.7 and 32.8 asked respondents about the extent to which they experienced an overwhelming supply to read their newspaper (on a 5-point scale). These statements are added up to obtain a single variable. The consistency of the scale will be measured with Cronbach’s alpha.

Hypothesis 15 Overwhelming media supply has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

The table below is an overview of the questions in the questionnaire that made it possible to investigate whether conative variables contribute to the explanation of newspaper loyalty and if so to what degree. The table also shows how the variables are operationalized into survey questions.

222 Empirical set-up

Table 19 Conative, circumstantial, action variables Variable QUESTIONNAIRE What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers: I think a newspaper is too expensive. Price I think a newspaper is too expensive if you take into consideration what is offered. Newspapers are worth every penny you pay for them. What is your opinion about the statements below: A newspaper you pay for is better than a free newspaper. Free papers A newspaper you pay for has more status than a free newspaper. After reading a free newspaper I always have the feeling of having missed something. I don’t want to pay for a newspaper. Delivery Self reported number of undelivered newspapers in the past six months. Time spent reading Self reported amount of time spent on reading the newspaper on weekdays and weekends.

Conative, circumstantial, action variables Variable QUESTIONNAIRE Overwhelming supply What is your opinion on the statements below: There are so many media I want to keep up with that I often do not find the time to read a newspaper. It often happens that I do not look forward to reading a newspaper. I often have the feeling that I don’t have enough time to really read a newspaper. It happens regularly that I leave a newspaper unread. I always find the time to read a newspaper. If I’m busy, most of the time I do not manage to read a newspaper To be honest, I only read a newspaper if I have time to spare. I read the news more and more often on the Internet. it is much more easy to follow the news on the Internet than in a newspaper. Reading a newspaper on the Internet is as good as in print. Specific medium The number of specific areas of interest, functions and perspectives the respondent preference for Internet prefers to obtain through the Internet rather than a newspaper. If there was only one way to get the news, which medium would you prefer? Medium preference Paid local newspaper, Paid national newspaper, Free newspaper, Television, Radio, Internet, Videotext, Magazine How do you prefer to be informed about the kinds of information listed below? This question is asked three times related to areas of interest, specific functions and and two clusters of perspectives. The possible preferences are: Radio, Television, Videotext, Magazines, Newspapers, Internet and “do not want this kind of information”.

Hypothesis 16. Conative variables contribute significantly to the explanation newspaper loyalty.

223 Chapter 6

6.4 The perception of supply

A rational way of decision making assumes that readers are objective in their perception of newspaper supply. That is to say there is no difference between the newspaper content and the perception of the newspaper content. But is that the case? It is very well possible that the actual newspaper supply deviates from the perceived supply. There is reason to believe that the perception of supply is influenced by expectations. And there is reason to believe that expectation is influenced by brand and layout. The layout of a page is structured by what can be referred to as modules, sections, or elements. A layout element is a set of text or images or a combination of the two that constitutes an autonomous entity. The elements are shaped as squares, rectangles, circles or ovals. Elements can be long, or short, narrow, or wide, rectangular or square. Elements are often separated by thin lines. The frequency, variation and intensity of the elements determine the expectations a page raises and the emotions it indulges. We assume that the number of elements on the page has an influence on the expectations of the newspaper content. The variations of the elements depend on differences in length, width and direction. In the Neue Zürcher Zeitung we see little variation between the elements. A long and narrow rectangle dominates. The difference between length and width is a positive number. As a result, the direction of the layout is vertical. In NRC Handelsblad en de Volkskrant, we see more variation. There is no vertical dominance. The elements have some variety of length and width. In De Telegraaf and Het Laatste Nieuws there is more variation. There are more articles and pictures with different shapes, the layout is both vertical and horizontal and there is more variation in the intensity if the elements.

224 Empirical set-up

Image 3: Layout

A B C

The difference in layout is described according to three criteria. (1) The frequency of elements. Is the number of elements of a newspaper page relatively high or low? (2) The variation of the elements. Are the elements similar in shape or is there variation? (3) The intensity of the elements. It is high if the designer has made abundant use of images, color, big letters, bold letters and sans serif fonts. We distinguish three classes.: A, B and C. In the table below we show an overview of the operationalization of the layout differences.

Table 20: Layout differences Layout A Layout B Layout C Frequency Frequency Frequency

No more than 10 elements on a No more than 15 elements on a More than 15 elements on a broadsheet page and less than five broadsheet page and less than eight broadsheet page and more than eight elements on a tabloid elements on a tabloid elements on a tabloid

Variation Variation Variation One dominant layout direction. Some dominance in layout direction. No dominant layout direction. Absence of squares and circles. Restraint in the use of squares and The horizontal dimensions exceed the circles but no absence. No absence of squares and circles. vertical dimensions The horizontal dimensions exceed the vice versa. vertical dimensions.

225 Chapter 6

Intensity Intensity Intensity Images do not exceed 40% of the Images do not exceed 25% of the editorial space Images may exceed 65% of the editorial space No more than 60% color editorial space No more than 40% color Headline space no more than 15% Full color Headline space no more than 10% Headlines have both a sans serif and Headline space may exceed 15% Headlines have a non-sans serif non-sans serif typeface(60/40) Headlines have a sans serif typeface typeface No more than 50% of the headlines Most headlines are bold No more than two headlines are bold are bold dia positive headlines No dia positive headlines Max 1 dia positive headline Underlined No underlining Max 1 underlining Upper case All lower case Max 1 upper case

Hypothesis 17 The layout of a newspaper has a significant impact on the perception of newspaper supply.

226 Chapter 7 Empirical data Chapter 7

tes ting the hypothes es

hypothes es

cognitive affective conative variables variables variables

ps ychological primary s econdary time s pent functions functions reading a free papers habit news paper

brand cultural s ocial media s econdary price s econdary functions tradition preference functions

overwhelming delivery news s upply lay-out and the as piration fuzzy perception of & s upply internet as s upply behavior alternative

228 Empirical data

7.0 Introduction

This chapter describes the findings of our empirical quest. It describes the results of the surveys and content analysis as we found them, that is in absolute numbers and where it is possible and functional in percentages. In the next chapter we go a step further and test the hypotheses by analyzing the data using logistic multiple regression analysis. We collected the data in 2008, some even in 2006. The years around 2008 are exactly years that are considered by the players in the newspaper industry as a time of major change. Therefore it is understandable to argue that the data are outdated. The first reaction to this argument is that books with empirical data are always outdated, because during the production time of a book there will be newer data. Even if this argument is true it does not refute the original position that the material is outdated. However, commercial research we did in the past twenty years suggest that readers preferences and perceptions are stable for a longer period of time. It showed that the allocation of areas of interest, specific functions, and to a lesser extend perspectives have not changed substantially in the two decades before 2008. Nevertheless it is possible that there will be major changes after 2008. The value of the regression analyses will not be touched by the argument that the data are outdated. The regression analyses are used testing hypotheses that are not influenced by an expiry date. The majority of the data description is about the primary function of the newspaper, the newspaper’s content. We will describe skipping behavior, preference, supply and match/mismatch of the content nineteen general areas of interest, three geographical areas of interest, seven specific functions, three preferences cluster 1, and two perspectives cluster 2. Those data will be crossed with age and gender, type of newspaper, type of reader. A possible difference between aspiration and behavior and specific preferences and fuzzy preferences will be established, as we will make a distinction of four kinds of dominant preferences. Next to this rational cluster we will describe an affective cluster, that consists of three variables: brand, habit and tradition. The brand score is based on a scale developed by the Gallup Organization. The scale consists of ten statements and showed for this sample a Cronbach alpha of 0,87 .

229 Chapter 7

The two other scales – habit and tradition showed alpha’s of 0,88 (a scale of five statements) and 0,70 (a scale of two statements) We start this chapter by sketching the demand of the Dutch population at large. As explained before, the notion of demand is rather ambiguous. On the one hand it refers to a need that can be latent or manifest. One has a demand for something that is lacking. The object of demand could be tangible and well-defined, or abstract and vague. We try to overcome those problems by using the concept of function; first the primary, then the secondary. The first section is about the newspaper’s content. The second section is about brand, habit and tradition. The third section is about circumstantial factors such as price, free papers and media preference. The following questions serve as a guide through the sections. What is it that readers want to read? Which areas of interest, which specific functions, which perspectives? Next to straightforward questions, the questionnaire asked the respondents to divide 100 points over the items on lists. The more they prefer to read a listed item the more points this item received. Next to the preferences of the Dutch population at large, we describe the preferences of population segments, such as age and gender, readers of national newspapers and reader clusters with similar information needs based on cluster analysis. Preferences can be measured positively, but also negatively. The decision not to read something is a preference as well. An aversion is a negative preference. For that reason in the following paragraphs we describe the skipping behavior of newspaper readers: the type and number of articles a respondent generally skips. The third group of answers is about the difference between what people say and what they do. Partly this is due to social factors. How- ever, one should not ignore psychological motives. The fourth question is about the possibility that there is a difference between the articles the readers would like to read the moment they start reading a newspaper and the articles they actually begin to read when they pick up a paper. And if there is a difference, what is the difference? The fifth question is about supply. We present the results of a content analysis we conducted of all the national newspapers including the free papers. Subsequently we present the results of a separate research

230 Empirical data

on two factors that may influence the perception of supply: brand and layout. We complete the section on functions by describing the secondary functions and finish off by comparing supply and demand. This leads to the answer to the sixth question: is there a difference between what people want and what they think they get? Is there a match or a mismatch: a difference between demand and perceived supply? The following section contains our findings concerning brand, habit and tradition. We calculate the brand score and show the answers to questions about habit and tradition. In the final section of this chapter we present answers to questions about circumstantial factors, such as delivery, price, access and free papers. `

empirical data

cognitive affective conattive variables variables variables

time s pent habit reading a free papers news paper aera of interes t s pecific functions gender brand pers pectives age media local/national education price paper preference tradition

overwhelming delivery news s upply as piration readers / & internet as s ubs cribers behavior alternative avers ion match, or dominant mis match preferences lay-out and the perception of s upply

231 Chapter 7

7.1 Functions

The function of an artifact enables the user to accomplish results he wants to accomplish. As we explained in the theoretical section, we distinguish primary and secondary functions. The primary function enables the user to accomplish results the designer intended. For newspapers the primary function is about its content. The designer is the journalist. The secondary function enables the user to accomplish results the designer did not have in mind when he was designing the artifact.

7.1.1 Preference for areas of interest, specific functions, perspectives Primary functions are about the content of the newspaper. We distinguish between areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives and look for the relative preference among and within those three domains. After we had established the preferences, analyzed the content and determined the perception of the content, we had the material that allowed us to compare supply and demand in the sense of what is perceived to be offered and what is preferred.

Table 21 Areas of interest Politics 7% Health & fitness 5% Crime 8% Living 4% Disasters, accidents and calamities 9% Travel 5% Mobility 5% Art & culture 3% Economy 5% Media 5% Sports 7% Leisure 5% Science 5% Celebrities 3% Reflection on life (psychology, religion, 3% New products 4% philosophy) Education 5% Games & relaxation 5% Society 5% N = 4155, total Dutch population.

The first thing that is noticeable when looking at the preferences of newspaper readers at large is that no area of interest really stands out; no topic is highly popular, or is put down with disdain. No subject gets

232 Empirical data special attention or special neglect. Heterogeneity and variety is the rule where areas of interest are concerned. The table above teaches us that ‘disasters, accidents and calamities’ should get more attention than ‘reflection on life’ and ‘arts and culture’, but the level stays modest and does not reach numbers that require double digits. The proximity of the news, however, shows a clear preference. As the news happens closer the preference increases. On average, local news should get 60% more coverage than international news.

Table 22 Areas of interest (geographical) Local 40% National 35% International 25% N = 4155, Dutch population.

As we explained in the theoretical section, the function of an article or photograph determines the content. There is a big gap between an article about Barack Obama that tries to explain why he won the presidency and an article about the fact that he won the presidency. There is a big gap between an article about Obama that gives the reader an overview of his economic policy and an article that pictures his lifestyle. There is a big gap between the article about Obama that makes a judgement and an article that explains. The point is that function makes a difference. Contrary to common thought people want context. There is room for bare facts and emotion but those functions do not dominate the preferences even if we focus on one particular audience. The Dutch at large are not keen on opinions. Other functions are more or less equally distributed, but there is some emphasis on overview and elucidation. The news as such, without any background, without a clue as to its meaning, as the bare facts, should not fill the majority of newspaper space. The general tendency is that people want some kind of guidance, some explanation about what is going on. What is important and what is not? What is the consequence? Why is it like this in the first place? How can I deal with it? The amount of facts that bombard the audience is too large. They confuse the audience, and

233 Chapter 7 generate a need for structure. There are no clergymen or apparatchiks that are of any help with the interpretation of those data. The second cluster is made up of three perspectives, three angles from which to look at the news: as a psychologist who wants to describe or understand the individual experience, as a sociologist who wants to describe or understand the group dynamics, as a political scientist who wants to describe or understand voluntary associations. We labeled those perspectives human, social and institutional.

Table 23 Specific functions Bare facts 16% Advice 14% Overview 18% Emotion 15% Elucidation 17% Entertainment 13% Opinion 8% N = 4,155

The survey shows that the second cluster of perspectives is also equally distributed with a slight exception for the institutional perspective.

Table 24 Perspectives Total population Practical perspective 57% General perspective 43% N = 4,155

Perspectives Total population Human perspective 37% Social perspective 37% Institutional perspective 26% N = 4,155

In the following paragraphs we describe the preferences of readers with different consumption patterns. We subsequently look at the possible differences among readers that usually read a national, local or free newspaper; readers of a particular national newspaper such as De Telegraaf, Metro, or NRC Handelsblad; readers with a subscription, or readers without; and readers that pay for a newspaper, as well as readers that do not.

234 Empirical data

7.1.2 Readers of different type of newspapers As far as areas of interests are concerned, the readers of national, local and free newspapers have the same preferences. The research shows no significant discrepancies. If there is a difference, the gap is no more than 1%. The next table illustrates the homogeneity.

Table 25 Areas of interest Local & national readers National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1,286) (n=1,665) (n=835) Politics 8% 7% 6% Crime 8% 8% 8% Disasters, accidents and calamities 9% 10% 10% Mobility 5% 5% 4% Economy 6% 5% 4% Sports 8% 8% 7% Science 5% 5% 5% Reflection on life (psychology, religion, philosophy) 3% 3% 3% Education 5% 5% 5% Society 5% 5% 6% Health & fitness 5% 6% 5% Living 4% 4% 4% Travel 5% 5% 5% Art & culture 3% 3% 3% Media 5% 5% 5% Leisure 5% 6% 6% Celebrities 3% 3% 3% New products 4% 4% 5% Games & relaxation 4% 5% 5%

Areas of interest could be classified on the basis of geographical criteria. The question is then to what extent readers prefer local, national and international news. This research shows that we must be reluctant to consider an answer obvious. Indeed, the readers of local papers want more local news in their paper than the readers of national and free papers, and according to local readers, the amount of local news must exceed national and international news but the extent of the difference is much less than the substantial discrepancy that was so ‘obvious’.

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Table 26 Areas of interest Local & national National dailies Local dailies (n=1,665) Free papers (n=835) (n=1,286) Local 33% 45% 38% National 40% 32% 37% International 27% 23% 25%

We notice the same pattern if we look at the preferred angle of a story, the kind of virtual questions readers would like to be answered; in other words, the preferences for specific functions and perspectives. The readers of national, local and free newspapers show similar preferences; both for functions and perspectives.

Table 27 Specific functions National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1,286) (n=1,665) (n=835) Bare facts 16% 16% 15% Overview 18% 18% 17% Elucidation 17% 17% 18% Opinion 9% 9% 8% Advice 13% 14% 14% Emotion 15% 15% 14% Entertainment 12% 12% 14%

Perspectives National, local and free papers National dailies(n=1,286) Local dailies(n=1,665) Free papers(n=835) Practical perspective 56% 58% 54% General perspective 44% 42% 45%

236 Empirical data

Perspectives National, local and free papers National dailies(n=1,286) Local dailies(n=1,665) Free papers(n=835) Human perspective 36% 38% 36% Social perspective 37% 36% 38% Institutional perspective 26% 26% 26%

7.1.3 Readers of particular national titles There is a slight difference in preference between the readers of different national newspapers. Most of the differences are between the readers of De Telegraaf and the AD on the one hand and NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant and Trouw on the other hand. The free papers could be linked to the first group; the readers of nrc.next are more difficult to place. As we can see in the table below, the distinction is rather small and the level of preference never reaches double digits with politics, sports and disasters, accidents and calamities as exceptions. Before going on, we want to stress the fact that the national newspapers we analyzed were published in the same week so the supply of news was the same for every newspaper. A difference in what a newspaper offered in that week - the newspaper’s supply - must be the result of a different selection of the news supply. The percentage of politics as a relative area of interest is about the same in NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant, nrc.next, Trouw, and De Pers: 11 and 10%. Spits and Metro spend only half of this amount of editorial space on politics. De Telegraaf and AD fall in between.

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Table 28 Areas of interest readers national newspapers NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf N=403 N=406 N=763 N=393 N=289 N=385 N=284 N=368 N=97 Politics 11% 11% 8% 11% 11% 8% 5% 6% 10% Crime 5% 6% 8% 6% 5% 8% 8% 9% 7% Disasters 6% 7% 10% 7% 6% 8% 10% 10% 9% Mobility 4% 4% 5% 4% 4% 5% 4% 5% 5% Economy 9% 7% 6% 7% 6% 7% 4% 4% 5% Sports 5% 6% 9% 6% 6% 12% 7% 6% 8% Science 8% 7% 4% 7% 6% 5% 5% 5% 6% Reflection on life 5% 5% 2% 5% 8% 2% 3% 3% 4% Education 6% 6% 4% 6% 7% 4% 5% 5% 5% Society 6% 7% 5% 7% 7% 5% 6% 6% 6% Health & fitness 4% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% Living 3% 3% 4% 3% 3% 4% 4% 4% 4% Travel 5% 4% 5% 4% 4% 6% 5% 5% 5% Art & culture 6% 5% 3% 5% 5% 3% 3% 3% 3% Media 4% 4% 5% 4% 4% 4% 5% 5% 4% Leisure 4% 4% 5% 4% 4% 6% 6% 6% 4% Celebrities 2% 2% 3% 2% 2% 2% 4% 3% 3% New products 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% 3% 5% 4% 4% Games & relaxation 3% 3% 4% 3% 3% 4% 6% 6% 3%

The preference for a specific function is about the same among the readers of the national newspapers. Statistically there is no difference. Overview and elucidation are the most preferred functions among all populations. The lowest preference for opinion is widespread. Notice that the function emotion scores lower than bare facts, overview and elucidation.

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Table 29 Specific functions readers national newspapers NRC de De nrc. Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf next n=403 n=406 n=763 n=393 n=289 n=428 n=284 n=368 n=97 Bare facts 17% 18% 16% 15% 16% 16% 15% 15% 14% Overview 21% 20% 17% 20% 20% 19% 16% 16% 20% Elucidation 20% 20% 17% 21% 20% 18% 17% 18% 19% Opinion 9% 9% 9% 9% 10% 9% 8% 8% 9% Advice 12% 11% 14% 12% 12% 14% 14% 14% 14% Emotion 13% 13% 16% 13% 15% 14% 15% 14% 14% Entertainment 10% 13% 14% 13% 12% 13% 14% 14% 11%

Table 30 Perspectives readers national newspapers NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf n=403 n=406 n=763 n=393 n=289 n=428 n=284 n=368 n=97 Human 31% 34% 38% 32% 36% 38% 37% 35% 34% perspective Social 40% 41% 36% 40% 39% 37% 37% 38% 40% perspective Institutional 30% 26% 26% 29% 26% 26% 27% 26% 26% perspective

The readers of De Telegraaf prefer the human perspective to the social, whereas the readers of NRC Handelsblad prefer the social to the human perspective. That is if the small differences we measured could be considered as a distinction between the readers of national newspapers. There also seems to be consensus among the readers of national newspapers as to the preference for a practical perspective.

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Table 31 Perspectives readers national newspapers NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant n=403 n=406 n=763 n=393 n=289 N=428 n=284 n=368 n=97 Practical 50% 51% 58% 51% 52% 58% 53% 55% 55% perspective General 50% 49% 42% 49% 48% 42% 47% 45% 45% perspective

Disasters, accidents and calamities show a mirror image. The attention or lack of attention for these area of interest is distributed along opposite lines. The AD spends more editorial space on sports than any other national newspaper. The majority of areas of interest are equally distributed.

7.1.4 Subscribers and readers with no subscription The figures show no different preferences between different types of national newspaper readers. This is the case for specific functions, areas of interest and perspectives. This is also the case if we compare subscribers and non-subscribers who read a particular newspaper and this is the case when we compare the readers that pay for their newspaper and those that do not.

Table 32 Areas of interest subscribers and readers of national newspapers NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader (n=202) (n=201) (n=200) (n=206) (n=407) (n=356) (n=197) (n=196) (n=165) (n=174) (n=211) (n=217) Politics 11% 10% 11% 10% 8% 6% 11% 9% 11% 10% 8% 6% Crime 5% 6% 6% 6% 8% 10% 6% 6% 5% 6% 8% 8% Disasters 6% 7% 7% 7% 10% 11% 7% 7% 6% 7% 8% 9% Mobility 4% 5% 4% 4% 5% 4% 4% 4% 4% 4% 5% 6% Economy 9% 8% 7% 6% 6% 5% 7% 6% 6% 5% 7% 4% Sports 5% 5% 6% 6% 9% 7% 6% 6% 6% 4% 12% 10% Science 8% 8% 7% 7% 4% 4% 7% 7% 6% 6% 5% 6% Reflection 5% 5% 5% 5% 2% 3% 5% 4% 8% 7% 2% 3% on life Education 6% 5% 6% 6% 4% 4% 6% 5% 7% 6% 4% 6% Society 6% 5% 7% 7% 5% 5% 7% 7% 7% 7% 5% 6%

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Health & 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 5% 6% fitness Living 3% 3% 3% 4% 4% 4% 3% 4% 3% 4% 4% 4% Travel 5% 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% 4% 5% 4% 5% 6% 4% Art & culture 6% 6% 5% 6% 3% 2% 5% 5% 5% 5% 3% 3% Media 4% 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% 4% 5% 4% 4% 4% 4% Leisure 4% 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% 4% 6% 4% 4% 6% 5% Celebrities 2% 3% 2% 2% 3% 4% 2% 3% 2% 2% 2% 3% New 4% 4% 3% 4% 3% 5% 3% 4% 3% 4% 3% 4% products Games & 3% 3% 3% 4% 4% 5% 3% 4% 3% 3% 4% 4% relaxation

Table 33

Areas of interest Subscribers and non Subscribers

NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader (n=202) (n=201) (n=200) (n=206) (n=407) (n=356) (n=197) (n=196) (n=165) (n=174) (n=211) (n=217) Local 21% 26% 24% 26% 33% 39% 21% 26% 25% 30% 34% 37% National 43% 40% 43% 40% 41% 37% 45% 42% 45% 38% 39% 38% International 36% 33% 33% 33% 26% 24% 35% 31% 30% 32% 27% 24%

Table 34 Specific functions Subscribers and readers without subscriptions NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader (n=202) (n=201) (n=200) (n=206) (n=407) (n=356) (n=197) (n=196) (n=165) (n=174) (n=211) (n=217) Bare facts 17% 17% 18% 17% 15% 16% 15% 15% 17% 15% 17% 15% Overview 21% 20% 20% 19% 18% 16% 20% 19% 20% 19% 20% 18% Elucidation 22% 17% 21% 19% 17% 16% 21% 21% 20% 19% 17% 18% Opinion 10% 8% 9% 9% 9% 9% 9% 9% 10% 9% 8% 10% Advice 10% 13% 11% 11% 14% 14% 11% 13% 11% 12% 13% 15% Emotion 11% 14% 12% 13% 14% 17% 13% 13% 14% 15% 14% 13% Entertainment 9% 11% 9% 17% 12% 16% 10% 15% 9% 15% 11% 15%

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Table 35 Perspectives Subscribers and readers without subscriptions NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader (n=202) (n=201) (n=200) (n=206) (n=407) (n=356) (n=197) (n=196) (n=165) (n=174) (n=211) (n=217) Human 31% 30% 34% 33% 37% 39% 31% 33% 35% 36% 38% 37% perspective Social perspective 40% 40% 41% 41% 37% 35% 40% 39% 40% 38% 36% 37% Institutional 29% 30% 25% 26% 26% 26% 29% 28% 26% 26% 26% 26% perspective

Table 36 Perspectives Subscribers and readers without subscriptions NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader Subscr Reader (n=202) (n=201) (n=200) (n=206) (n=407) (n=356) (n=197) (n=196) (n=165) (n=174) (n=211) (n=217) Practical perspective 48% 52% 49% 53% 58% 57% 49% 52% 50% 55% 58% 57% General perspective 52% 48% 51% 47% 42% 43% 51% 48% 50% 45% 42% 43%

We did not only compare subscribers with non subscribers - people that buy the newspaper at a news stand, or a supermarket, borrow it, read it at a friend’s house, at the library, or some other public place. We also looked for a possible difference in preference between people that paid for a newspaper and people that did not. Here the people that have a subscription and those who buy the newspaper at a news stand belong to one group; the people who do not pay for newspaper one way or another belong to the second group. The data show no evidence in newspaper consumer behavior between paying and non-paying readers.

7.1.5 Readers with different ages and gender Although there are some differences in the preferences of men and women, age groups and gender do not change the general picture of preference. We observed this for areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives. The tables and the diagrams below show how little impact age and gender has on reader preference with sports as the only exception.

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Table 37 Areas of interest age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Politics 9% 6% 5% 7% 7% 8% 9% Crime 7% 8% 8% 8% 9% 8% 7% Disasters, accidents and calamities 8% 10% 9% 10% 10% 9% 8% Mobility 5% 4% 4% 4% 5% 5% 6% Economy 6% 4% 3% 5% 5% 5% 5% Sports 11% 4% 7% 8% 7% 7% 8% Science 6% 4% 6% 6% 5% 5% 5% Reflection on life 3% 4% 4% 3% 3% 3% 4% Education 4% 5% 5% 5% 5% 4% 4% Society 5% 6% 5% 5% 5% 6% 5% Health & fitness 4% 7% 5% 5% 5% 6% 6% Living 3% 4% 3% 4% 4% 4% 4% Travel 4% 5% 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% Art & culture 3% 3% 3% 3% 3% 3% 4% Media 5% 5% 5% 4% 5% 4% 5% Leisure 5% 6% 6% 5% 6% 5% 5% Celebrities 2% 4% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% New products 4% 4% 6% 5% 4% 4% 3% Games & relaxation 5% 5% 6% 4% 5% 4% 5%

Diagram 4

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Table 38 Areas of interest: age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) Bare facts 17% 14% 15% 16% 16% 16% 14% Overview 18% 17% 17% 19% 17% 18% 18% Elucidation 17% 17% 17% 17% 17% 18% 17% Opinion 9% 8% 9% 8% 8% 8% 9% Advice 13% 14% 13% 13% 14% 14% 15% Emotion 13% 16% 14% 14% 16% 15% 16% Entertainment 12% 13% 15% 13% 13% 11% 11%

Diagram 5

Functions seem to be independent of age and gender too, as can be seen in the diagram above and the table below.

Table 39 Perspectives: age and gender

Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Practical perspective 56% 57% 52% 53% 57% 58% 61% General perspective 44% 43% 48% 47% 43% 42% 39%

244 Empirical data

Table 40 Perspectives: age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) Human perspective 37% 38% 36% 37% 38% 38% 39% Social perspective 37% 37% 37% 37% 37% 36% 37% Institutional perspective 26% 25% 28% 26% 26% 26% 25%

Table 41

Table 42 Areas of interest: age and gender

Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630)

Local 38% 42% 34% 39% 41% 42% 43% National 36% 35% 38% 36% 35% 35% 34% International 26% 24% 28% 26% 24% 24% 23%

Diagram 6

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7.1.6 Readers with similar dominant preferences Until now, the results we have presented are averages. If the standard deviation is high this could give the wrong impression. We should not exclude the possibility that there are clusters with dominant preferences. As a matter of fact, cluster analysis shows there are at least four. There is a cluster with a special interest in politics, economics, the bare facts, elucidation and the institutional perspective. People who belong to this cluster are fascinated by power. They are interested in the process of getting things done. They want to know and understand who is in charge, why they are in charge and what they do with their power. The second cluster that came out of the analysis has a special interest in arts and culture, society and science. They like articles with an overview, or that elucidate, or are approached from a social perspective. In contrast to the first cluster, the people who belong to the second cluster are not triggered by the process, by questioning how to get things done, how to realize one’s targets; but by the content itself, by the joy and comfort it provides. People that belong to the first cluster do not take their life for granted. They reflect on their situation. They want to know, understand, or even control their lives. They are rational. People that belong to the second cluster are naïve rather than cynical. They are optimistic, have faith. The two clusters show a remarkable resemblance to the types that were recognized by William James more than 100 years ago in the lectures he delivered in 1906 at the Lowell Institute in Boston. Talking about what he called ‘temperament’ he distinguished the ‘tough-minded’ from the ‘tender-minded’.242 The tender-minded he characterized as “rationalistic (going by ‘principles’) intellectualistic, idealistic, optimistic, religious, free-willist, monistic, and dogmatical”. The tough- minded as “empiricist (going by ‘facts’), sensationalistic [going by their senses, LdW), materialistic, pessimistic irreligious, fatalist, pluralistic and skeptical”243 . The tough and the tender have a low opinion of each other, writes James. Both sides are convinced that it is inconceivable to sympathize with the other’s position. “The tough think of the tender as sentimentalists and soft-heads. The tender feel the tough to be un- refined, callous, or brutal”.244 Both the power-minded and the content-minded have an open eye for the world they live in. They are not only interested in the questions that emerge from their personal lives. They do not merely focus on the

246 Empirical data things that they will experience or have experienced personally. Their curiosity goes beyond the horizon of their own existence. The two other clusters that emerge from the analysis have a different approach. Their curiosity is more often connected to their own experience, to what happens to them personally. Events that take place in the corridors of power only attract their interest if they perceive a personal consequence. If this is not the case and the article does not explain the practical consequences of the new policy, it does not fulfill the function the reader wants to be fulfilled; it does not answer the right questions, the article is less appealing. The logic of cluster three does not imply that the members of this category are averse to institutional reflection or lack social engagement. But the reflection and engagement are not linked to abstract concepts. Reflection is not about the social, or political structure and culture, but related to the tangible reality of personal life. Their objective is restricted to improve the quality of their lives, and does not encompass society at large. Therefore we call this cluster life-quality minded. The cluster analysis also produced a fourth cluster with a dominant preference for crime, calamities, entertainment, celebrities, the human perspective and the function of emotion. Reflection is not their forte. They do not live in a room with a view from where they can observe the world. Indeed they want to narrow the world down to their own world, to the problems they encounter in everyday life. They take things as they come; without reflecting about their particular circumstances like the other clusters. Instead of reflecting about improving their life quality they look for moments of joy and for ways of arousing their senses. We call them the sensationalists. We should not exclude the possibility that there is a cluster without any dominant preferences. The people who belong to this cluster do not have a special interest, their preferences are literally average. The next table shows that the clusters are not equally distributed. The world-oriented clusters are much smaller than the clusters that focus on personal circumstances: ‘my world’ is more than twice as big as ‘the world’. (23% against 57%, the remaining 20% does not have a dominant preference.) The power-minded cluster is almost twice as large as the content- minded cluster. The research shows that the cluster with special interest in the content of things, in arts and culture and science is by far

247 Chapter 7 the smallest; ‘the sensation-minded’ - the biggest cluster - is four times as big.

Table 43 Clusters of people with similar dominant preferences ‘The power-minded’ 15% 23% ‘The content-minded’ 8% ‘The life quality-minded’ 26% 57% ‘The sensation-minded’ 31% No dominant preferences 20% 20% N = 4155

Image 4

We wondered if the pattern we have just sketched would change if we looked at the readers of different types of newspapers, such as national and local papers and free papers, or particular titles. The outcome could be also different if we looked at reader characteristics, such as age and gender, but also subscribers and non-subscribers. The readers of national, local and free dailies showed a similar distribution of clusters. National newspapers do have more ‘power-minded’ readers than the readers of free papers, but the ranking order remains the same: 1. sensation. 2. life quality 3. power 4. content.

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Table 44 Distribution clusters National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1.286) (n=1.665) (n=835) ‘The power-minded’ 19% 15% 11% ‘The content-minded’ 9% 7% 8% ‘The life quality-minded’ 24% 28% 25% ‘The sensation-minded’ 29% 31% 35% No dominant preferences 20% 20% 21% Comparing the preferences of the various national daily readers, the homogeneity vanishes. Dominant preferences are not equally distributed. The differences become bigger if the comparison is based on a difference in gender, age and particular titles. The power-minded cluster is more popular among male readers than among female readers: 21 and 8%. Almost a quarter of all newspaper readers between the ages of 13 and 25 belong to the power-minded cluster, whereas this percentage is twice as high in the age category 50-65.

Table 45 Areas of interest age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) ‘The power-minded’ 21% 8% 8% 13% 14% 19% 17% ‘The content-minded’ 8% 8% 10% 7% 8% 8% 8% ‘The life quality-minded’ 21% 31% 25% 26% 25% 28% 25% ‘The sensation-minded’ 30% 32% 40% 34% 33% 26% 26% No dominant preferences 20% 20% 18% 20% 20% 20% 23%

As we see in the table below, 60% of the NRC Handelsblad readers are power-minded. This is three times more than the number of power- minded readers of De Telegraaf. The percentage of power-minded readers that usually read the free newspaper Metro is 9%. 25% of the readers of Trouw have a dominant preference for arts and culture and science. Only a very small percentage of De Telegraaf readers belong to this cluster. The sensation-minded cluster shows an opposite pattern; relatively high percentages for De Telegraaf, Metro and Spits and relatively low percentages for the readers of NRC Handelsblad and de Volkskrant. The cluster with a preference for life quality is not prominent among the readers of NRC Handelsblad (7%), relatively strong among the readers of AD (23%), whereas de Volkskrant has a middle position.

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Table 46 The Clusters Subscribers national papers and readers free papers NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf n=202 n=200 N=407 n=197 n=165 n=211 N=284 N=368 N=97 ‘The power-minded’ 60% 51% 20% 47% 39% 21% 14 9 31 ‘The content-minded’ 8% 9% 1% 12% 25% 3% 2 2 3 ‘The life quality- 18 18 7% 16% 15% 10% 10% 23% 19 minded’ ‘The sensation- 43 28 4% 6% 40% 8% 8% 28% 42 minded’ No dominant 28 21 21% 19% 25% 23% 18% 24% 23 preferences

Image 5

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7.1.7 Aversion to certain areas of interest Before asking respondents to indicate their preferences for areas of interest, we asked them if there are areas of interest they usually skip when reading a newspaper. This table shows that around a fifth of the national and local newspaper readers do not skip areas of interest a priori. Readers of free dailies skip around 13% as an average. Two-thirds of both the national and local newspaper readers skip between one to five types of articles a priori. For the readers of free newspapers this percentage is lower, but a higher percentage - 28% of them - skips more domains in advance.

Table 47 Skipping Areas of interest a priori percentage of respondents that skips areas of interest National NRC de De nrc. Local Free De Trouw AD Spits Metro dailies Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf next dailies papers Pers N=1.286 n=202 n=200 N=407 n=197 n=165 n=211 N=1.665 N=835 N=284 N=368 N=97 0 18% 20% 20% 19% 16% 21% 17% 21% 13% 10% 15% 16% 1-5 63% 66% 66% 61% 73% 66% 63% 61% 57% 59% 54% 57% 6-10 16% 14% 14% 19% 10% 12% 19% 16% 28% 26% 29% 26% 11-15 4% 4% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% 4% 3% 3% 3% 1% > 15 0% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0%

In the table below we see that some areas of interest are systematically left unread by a fifth to a third of newspaper readers. Other topics gain a broader readership and there are niches with a relative small but intense readership.

Table 48 Skipping Areas of interest percentage of respondents that skip areas of interest Politics 22% Health & fitness 14% Crime 7% Living 22% Disasters, accidents and calamities 6% Travel 21% Mobility 15% Art & culture 34% Economy 32% Media 13% Sports 34% Leisure 9% Science 21% Celebrities 22% Reflection on life (psychology, religion, philosophy) 38% New products 21% Education 14% Games & relaxation 16% Society 13% N = 4155.

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Even if they belong to a specific type of newspaper the readers of one newspaper can behave differently compared to readers of another paper in the same category. From the table below we learn that, as a general pattern there are, indeed, differences in skipping behavior between the readers of the various national newspapers. The widest gap is between De Telegraaf and the AD on the one hand and the other national newspapers on the other hand. Mobility, economy, sports, science, reflection on life, social issues, art and culture, media and leisure are the topics of variation. Big differences are politics, sports, Reflection on life and arts and culture. No more than 9 percent of the subscribers of nrc.next have the tendency to skip politics; 20% of De Telegraaf readers are inclined to do so. 36% of the Trouw readers do not read the sports section, 29% of De Telegraaf readers skip sports. Almost a fifth leaves articles about social issues unread. The readers of De Telegraaf have much less interest in art and culture than the subscribers of NRC Handelsblad: 36 against 19% skipping behavior. The figures show that there is striking consensus about celebrity news and new products. The readership of the three free papers belongs to two different categories. On the one hand there are the readers of Spits and Metro, on the other hand there are the readers of De Pers. Readers of Spits and Metro skip political content nearly three times more often than readers of De Pers. Two-fifths of Spits and Metro readers skip economic topics, compared to 31% of De Pers readers.

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Table 49 Skipping areas of interest De NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro Pers n=202 N=200 n=407 n=197 n=165 N=211 N=284 N=368 N=97 Politics 13% 12% 20% 9% 11% 21% 33% 29% 10% Crime 8% 8% 5% 6% 9% 7% 9% 8% 6% Disasters, accidents 8% 7% 5% 3% 9% 4% 8% 5% 6% and calamities Mobility 15% 15% 12% 18% 14% 9% 23% 20% 17% Economy 19% 23% 30% 22% 25% 30% 41% 38% 31% Sports 34% 33% 29% 38% 36% 35% 40% 38% 37% Science 11% 10% 23% 13% 11% 19% 22% 22% 18% Reflection on life (psychology, religion, 23% 21% 42% 26% 13% 37% 40% 41% 35% philosophy) Education 8% 8% 16% 8% 7% 12% 14% 14% 12% Society 9% 8% 14% 6% 6% 9% 15% 12% 10% Health & fitness 12% 13% 14% 12% 12% 12% 18% 17% 14% Living 20% 20% 20% 22% 18% 22% 30% 24% 22% Travel 18% 14% 18% 17% 18% 20% 23% 23% 24% Art & culture 19% 21% 36% 19% 21% 32% 35% 37% 36% Media 9% 8% 12% 8% 11% 13% 15% 18% 12% Leisure 9% 9% 8% 7% 8% 7% 12% 11% 11% Celebrities 28% 25% 21% 23% 26% 26% 25% 21% 27% New products 18% 19% 21% 17% 24% 19% 19% 23% 22% Games & relaxation 20% 18% 15% 19% 18% 12% 19% 18% 20%

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7.1.7.1 Age and gender of readers with aversion Gender does not make a difference when you look at the readers with aversion; males and females skip as many articles. The skipping intensity is also well distributed among various age groups, with one exception: there is a small gap between the youngest and the oldest groups.

Table 50 Skipping Areas of interest Number of skipped items, age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1,033) (n=630) 0 19% 16% 13% 15% 19% 20% 22% 1-5 58% 62% 62% 63% 60% 57% 51% 6-10 19% 19% 20% 18% 18% 18% 23% 11-15 4% 4% 5% 5% 1% 3% 5% > 15 1% 1% 2% 3% 0% 0% 1%

Differences increase when we take the content into consideration. In fact the discrepancy between genders is greater than the differences between various age groups. In the table below we can see that female readers skip political and economic articles nearly twice as much as male readers. Male readers are less likely to skip the sports and science sections than female readers, while the latter are less likely to skip articles related to Reflection on life, celebrities and health & fitness.

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Table 51 Skipping Areas of interest age and gender Male Female 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=2.072) (n=2.083) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) Politics 16% 28% 29% 23% 22% 18% 20% Crime 8% 7% 8% 8% 6% 7% 9% Disasters, 6% 6% 5% 6% 6% 5% 6% Mobility 12% 17% 21% 17% 13% 13% 12% Economy 23% 42% 42% 31% 30% 30% 31% Sports 26% 42% 36% 37% 34% 32% 31% Science 14% 27% 21% 19% 19% 22% 24% Reflection on life 43% 34% 36% 39% 39% 39% 37% Education 16% 13% 12% 12% 12% 16% 22% Society 14% 11% 14% 13% 11% 12% 15% Health & fitness 20% 9% 17% 16% 13% 14% 11% Living 24% 19% 34% 21% 18% 19% 21% Travel 22% 20% 26% 22% 19% 19% 21% Art & culture 37% 31% 37% 37% 36% 30% 29% Media 14% 12% 12% 12% 12% 14% 14% Leisure 11% 7% 10% 10% 7% 9% 9% Celebrities 28% 16% 23% 25% 19% 23% 24% New products 21% 20% 15% 18% 15% 25% 33% Games & relaxation 19% 13% 13% 17% 14% 19% 16% N = 4155, total Dutch population

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7.1.8 Secondary functions In the summer of 1948, the citizens of New York city did not get their newspaper for two long weeks. The delivery department was on strike. Bernard Berelson transformed this domestic disaster into a social science milestone as he realized that the strike made it possible to investigate what “missing my newspaper means”.245 This study shows that not everyone buys a newspaper just because they want to read the news. The newspaper serves functions that had little to do with the stories about what is going on in and outside the USA. The users used the paper in a way that was different from the inventor’s intention. The founders of newspapers did not think of a newspaper as an instrument for cultural identity or as a subject of social prestige. They wanted people to know, to understand, or to take a stand. In this study, the functions that are defined by the reader are referred to as secondary. Secondary functions are ascribed by readers. They help them to accomplish results that were not intended by the designer. Psychological secondary functions enable readers to establish a feeling of wellness: to create a special moment, to escape from the turmoil of the daily routine, or feel good about oneself. Social-cultural secondary functions enable readers to show the world who they are. Having a newspaper or a particular newspaper is the articulation of one’s identity. “Buying a particular newspaper shows who I am, where I stand, to what kind of people I belong.” We measured the secondary functions by asking the respondents to completely agree, agree, disagree, completely disagree or have no opinion about 21 statements. The statements were grouped into four scales referring to the concepts that made up secondary functions: one psychological and three social-cultural. The psychological functions are the intention to gain personal gratification. Gratification because the function enables the agent to be in a state of mind that the agent perceives as gratifying, a sense of joy connected to the consumption of an artifact. Personal because it is the individual who decides what state of mind he or she is in and not a third-party who decides that certain consumption should provide the sense of joy.

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Table 52

Psychological functions Alpha Personal gratification

Reading the newspaper means that I am able to detach from my daily routines

Reading a newspaper means that I can focus on something else Reading a newspaper is one of those precious moments of the day 0.796 Reading a newspaper is a pleasant way to fill an empty moment If I don’t read the newspaper I consider this as a personal shortcoming Reading a newspaper gives me a good feeling about myself

Socio-cultural functions Alpha Reading a newspaper makes me more interesting to other people Reading a newspaper gives people the feeling that they belong to something People who do not read a newspaper risk others considering them stupid Having a newspaper gives people status People like to show others that they read a newspaper

I think that I fail if I don’t read a newspaper 0.915 People that are important to me think that you need to read a newspaper to know what’s happening in the world People that are important to me think that you ought to read a newspaper I read a newspaper because it is my civic duty to inform myself with news and background information Everybody ought to read a newspaper People that are important to me would be surprised if I did not read a newspaper I would be confronted by people that are important to me if I never read a newspaper

The socio-cultural functions measure functions that are connected to social status, social control and social participation. The reliability of the scales were tested using Cronbach’s Alpha. Statements with a factor loading of less than 0.6 were discarded, resulting in Alphas of 0.80 for the primary functions and 0.91 for social-cultural functions. The grouped score ranged from strong match (very high fulfillment of secondary functions) to strong mismatch (very low fulfillment of secondary functions).

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7.1.9 Match or mismatch The first question of our empirical quest was to determine whether the perception of supply corresponds with demand. We used the concept of function in measuring demand; at first the primary function, in a later phase the secondary function. In the case of the primary function, the objectives of the designer and the user coincide. The designer - the journalist - enables the user - the reader - to understand why events happen as they do. The designer intends to fulfill this function, the user is pleased that this function is fulfilled. In the case of the secondary function, the user uses the designer’s product to fulfill a function that was not intended by the designer. For the user, a newspaper may serve as a token of prestige whereas the journalist designed and produced it as a medium of news. Practi- cally speaking, the primary function has to do with the content of the newspaper and the secondary function with the social, psychological and cultural perspectives from which a newspaper is approached. We must not forget our main objective in this phase of the research; that is to determine if the newspaper readers get what they want in terms of content, but also in terms of psychological, social and cultural needs. Demand was put into questions like questions about areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives. We compared demand with the perception of supply that was measured in the survey and not - at that point - with the results of the extensive content analysis. It is not the supply but the perception of supply that determines the readers’ behavior. The answers to 34 questions were used to measure the primary function. For each respondent, we determined whether there was a discrepancy or correspondence between the answers to the questions about preferences and the perception of supply. If this was the case in less than 25% of the answers, we considered this response an indication of a strong mismatch. If the correspondence was between 25% and 50%, it was referred to as a mismatch; a correspondence between 50 and 75% as a match and a correspondence above 75% as a strong match. The overall findings show a clear mismatch between demand and the perception of supply: 76%.

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Table 53 NL Strong match 5% 24% Match 19% Mismatch 56% 76% Strong mismatch 20%

We wondered if the type of newspaper or a specific newspaper title makes a difference. And secondly whether the degree of mismatch coincides with a different kind of content. Is mismatch equally distributed within a title among areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives, or does the type of interest area, specific functions or perspectives make a difference? Finally we wanted to know if a mismatch is the result of abundance or deficiency; is the reader getting too much, or not enough? National, local and free newspapers appear to have the same distribution of match and mismatch. The discrepancy between demand and supply seems to be an ironic benchmark. There are slightly more readers of free papers who experience a strong mismatch but this difference is hardly significant.

Table 54 National NL Local newspapers Free papers newspapers Strong match 5% 4% 5% 4% Weak match 19% 19% 19% 18% Weak mismatch 56% 58% 56% 54% Strong mismatch 20% 19% 20% 24%

It is remarkable that we also found this degree of match among the subscribers of national newspapers. The experience of different national newspaper subscribers is almost identical as can be seen in the table below.

Table 55 NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Strong match 3% 4% 4% 3% 1% 5% 5% 3% 3% Weak match 18% 18% 18% 20% 21% 22% 19% 17% 22% Weak mismatch 62% 64% 59% 62% 64% 51% 54% 55% 50% Strong 17% 15% 18% 15% 13% 22% 22% 25% 25% mismatch

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Does this pattern of homogeneity change if the content is taken into consideration? Is mismatch as strong for any kind of content and is the outcome similar between different newspapers? In the table below, all the cases above 66% (two-thirds) are green, above 75% (three-quarters) are red. The table shows that not all areas of interest have the same degree of mismatch. The discrepancy between the perceived supply of text and images about politics, economy, sports and science and the preferences for these areas of interest is larger than is the case in the other areas. It is remarkable that this pattern is more or less the same in all titles.

Table 56 Mismatch NRC Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Politics 67% 67% 60% 70% 62% 73% 72% 69% 65% 69% 27% 28% 31% 35% 31% Crime 56% 57% 57% 56% 61% 60% 57% 55% 61% 60% 40% 43% 45% 39% 40% Calamities 59% 63% 58% 60% 61% 47% 46% 46% 48% 49% 53% 54% 54% 52% 51% Mobility 55% 53% 55% 57% 55% 64% 62% 58% 57% 46% 36% 38% 42% 43% 54% Economy 75% 64% 67% 65% 64% 75% 68% 71% 70% 65% 25% 32% 29% 30% 35% Sports 70% 71% 75% 71% 67% 63% 63% 64% 66% 68% 37% 37% 36% 34% 33% Science 65% 56% 65% 60% 53% 47% 47% 50% 48% 46% 53% 53% 50% 52% 54% Reflection 61% 64% 57% 66% 46% 51% 53% 60% 67% 55% 49% 47% 40% 34% 45% on life Education 59% 58% 53% 61% 51% 52% 50% 50% 52% 46% 48% 50% 50% 48% 54% Society 58% 59% 59% 59% 56% 52% 50% 44% 56% 41% 48% 50% 56% 44% 59% Health & 57% 59% 53% 58% 56% 37% 40% 36% 31% 31% 63% 60% 64% 70% 69% fitness Living 52% 53% 54% 49% 52% 52% 47% 45% 42% 56% 48% 53% 55% 58% 44% Travel 59% 62% 59% 56% 56% 40% 44% 38% 41% 51% 60% 56% 63% 59% 50% Art & culture 62% 67% 57% 61% 50% 56% 59% 56% 62% 64% 44% 41% 44% 38% 36% Media 54% 54% 53% 53% 55% 45% 41% 44% 37% 42% 56% 59% 56% 64% 58% Leisure 58% 55% 57% 50% 58% 28% 39% 36% 27% 30% 72% 61% 64% 74% 70% Celebrities 41% 42% 45% 42% 61% 49% 57% 45% 48% 69% 52% 43% 55% 52% 31% New products 50% 49% 56% 47% 55% 36% 32% 43% 31% 42% 65% 68% 58% 69% 58% Games & 51% 51% 55% 51% 55% 36% 41% 48% 37% 36% 64% 59% 52% 63% 64% relaxation

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Table 57 AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers Politics 67% 67% 60% 58% 73% 72% 69% 63% 27% 28% 31% 38% Crime 56% 57% 57% 55% 60% 57% 55% 53% 40% 43% 45% 47% Calamities 59% 63% 58% 60% 47% 46% 46% 57% 53% 54% 54% 43% Mobility 55% 53% 55% 63% 64% 62% 58% 57% 36% 38% 42% 43% Economy 75% 64% 67% 60% 75% 68% 71% 72% 25% 32% 29% 28% Sports 70% 71% 75% 71% 63% 63% 64% 68% 37% 37% 36% 32% Science 65% 56% 65% 58% 47% 47% 50% 34% 53% 53% 50% 66% Reflection on 61% 64% 57% 47% 51% 53% 60% 39% 49% 47% 40% 61% life Education 59% 58% 53% 55% 52% 50% 50% 42% 48% 50% 50% 59% Society 58% 59% 59% 56% 52% 50% 44% 50% 48% 50% 56% 50% Health & 57% 59% 53% 52% 37% 40% 36% 32% 63% 60% 64% 68% fitness Living 52% 53% 54% 54% 52% 47% 45% 40% 48% 53% 55% 60% Travel 59% 62% 59% 71% 40% 44% 38% 41% 60% 56% 63% 59% Art & culture 62% 67% 57% 55% 56% 59% 56% 55% 44% 41% 44% 45% Media 54% 54% 53% 53% 45% 41% 44% 48% 56% 59% 56% 52% Leisure 58% 55% 57% 56% 28% 39% 36% 41% 72% 61% 64% 59% Celebrities 41% 42% 45% 56% 49% 57% 45% 74% 52% 43% 55% 26% New products 50% 49% 56% 53% 36% 32% 43% 59% 65% 68% 58% 41% Games & 51% 51% 55% 53% 36% 41% 48% 65% 64% 59% 52% 35% relaxation

The distribution of specific functions shows a different pattern. As a matter of fact, there are two. According to most newspaper readers, newspapers are too judgmental, The mismatch of perspectives exceeds 50%.

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Table 58 Mismatch Supply > Demand Supply < Demand NRC Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf

69% 75% 73% 72% 73% 26% 21% 22% 22% 17% 74% 79% 78% 78% 83%

69% 75% 73% 72% 73% 74% 79% 78% 78% 83% 26% 21% 22% 22% 17%

Table 59 Mismatch Supply > Demand Supply < Demand AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers 63% 69% 70% 61% 31% 22% 28% 24% 69% 79% 73% 76% 63% 69% 70% 61% 69% 79% 73% 76% 31% 22% 28% 24%

Table 60 Mismatch Supply > Demand Supply < Demand NRC Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Bare facts 57% 68% 63% 58% 65% 50% 54% 59% 54% 52% 50% 46% 41% 46% 49% Overview 65% 65% 63% 61% 63% 61% 49% 56% 54% 50% 39% 51% 44% 46% 50% Elucidation 58% 65% 63% 63% 62% 47% 44% 39% 47% 41% 53% 56% 61% 53% 59% Opinion 66% 71% 65% 66% 67% 84% 80% 79% 80% 81% 16% 21% 21% 20% 19% Advice 57% 60% 61% 56% 64% 36% 39% 37% 41% 39% 64% 61% 63% 59% 62% Emotion 61% 62% 62% 57% 66% 30% 39% 29% 42% 39% 70% 62% 71% 58% 61% Entertainment 59% 59% 59% 58% 64% 24% 28% 34% 25% 30% 76% 72% 67% 75% 70%

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Table 61 Mismatch Supply > Demand Supply < Demand AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers Bare facts 64% 61% 64% 68% 58% 60% 63% 73% 42% 40% 37% 27% Overview 60% 56% 67% 62% 49% 48% 46% 37% 51% 52% 54% 63% Elucidation 60% 64% 71% 62% 40% 33% 28% 28% 61% 67% 73% 72% Opinion 65% 66% 66% 68% 80% 80% 79% 74% 20% 20% 21% 26% Advice 59% 64% 61% 63% 40% 45% 41% 36% 60% 55% 59% 64% Emotion 60% 66% 66% 78% 35% 38% 43% 46% 65% 62% 57% 54% Entertainment 60% 66% 67% 75% 29% 38% 38% 36% 71% 62% 62% 64%

Table 62 Mismatch Supply > Demand Supply < Demand NRC Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Handelsblad NRC de Volkskrant nrc.next Trouw De Telegraaf Human 62% 58% 59% 58% 63% 32% 38% 44% 42% 44% 68% 62% 56% 59% 56% perspective Social 56% 52% 54% 53% 57% 43% 45% 47% 48% 46% 57% 55% 53% 52% 54% perspective Institutional 60% 60% 58% 52% 58% 74% 66% 62% 61% 59% 26% 34% 38% 40% 41% Perspective AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers AD Spits Metro De Pers Human 58% 56% 66% 64% 33% 52% 51% 53% 67% 48% 49% 47% perspective Social 52% 52% 58% 61% 43% 51% 47% 46% 57% 49% 53% 54% perspective Institutional 60% 54% 63% 59% 71% 49% 49% 53% 29% 51% 51% 47% perspective

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Table 63 National Newspapers in the Netherlands supply preference match mismatch supply > demand supply < demand Practical 57% 38% 62% 17% 83% General 43% 38% 62% 83% 17%

When we started the analysis there were six paid titles and four free newspapers. During our research, the free newspaper titled DAG ceased to exist therefore we removed it from this presentation. All newspapers were analyzed in the same week. As a result, a difference in the supply of text and images between the newspapers could not be the result of a difference in news supply because the supply was the same for every newspaper as we analyzed the same week. The difference in content between newspapers is a difference in newspaper policy. It was the result of manifest or latent editorial decisions. Mani- fest decisions are decisions one is aware of, latent decisions happen without the intention to choose.

7.1.9.1 The supply of areas of interest The national Dutch newspapers differ in their supply of interest areas. We found no topic equally distributed. The differences are between and within newspapers. The percentages are in space of the total content, text, images and headlines.

Table 64 Areas of interest text, images and headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 20% 16% 9% 15% 17% 8% 10% 13% 13% Crime 2% 2% 3% 6% 2% 3% 2% 4% 2% Calamities 1% 2% 2% 4% 2% 2% 1% 3% 1% Mobility 1% 1% 2% 1% 2% 2% 2% 3% 5% Economy & personal 20% 9% 22% 6% 11% 8% 7% 9% 12% finances Sports 7% 12% 19% 10% 11% 31% 19% 18% 10% Science 7% 3% 3% 8% 4% 3% 3% 4% 2% Reflection on life 1% 2% 0,2% 1% 7% 0,1% 2% 0,3% 1% Education 1% 1% 0,4% 1% 2% 0,2% 0,4% 0,3% 1% Society 4% 8% 5% 9% 15% 6% 6% 8% 9% Health & fitness 2% 5% 1% 1% 3% 3% 2% 3% 0,4%

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Living 1% 0,2% 1% 4% 1% 1% 1% 0,4% 2% Travel 1% 1% 2% 1% 0,1% 4% 2% 1% 2% Art & culture 20% 23% 7% 18% 13% 8% 14% 16% 18% Media 8% 8% 8% 9% 7% 9% 12% 7% 11% Leisure 1% 1% 4% 1% 1% 2% 3% 2% 2% Celebrities 0,1% 1% 6% 1% 0,3% 5% 7% 4% 2% New products 1% 2% 1% 1% 0,2% 1% 1% 0,3% 2% Games & entertainment 1% 2% 4% 2% 2% 4% 5% 4% 5%

The difference within newspapers is evident from the fact that not every area of interest receives the same attention. Newspapers have preferences, some areas of interest use 20% of the total editorial content, other domains use no more than 1%. The differences between newspapers is shown by the fact that they all have other preferences. For example NRC Handelsblad uses a fifth of its editorial space on ‘politics’. Only the domain ‘economy and personal finance’ gets equal attention. The other fifteen domains do not reach the double-digit level.

Table 65

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The AD uses 8% of its editorial space for the area of interest: politics. nrc.next emphasizes the areas of interest crime and calamities more than the other national newspapers including the free papers: 6%. As far as crime is concerned, all other papers show a similar approach: 2 and 3%. The table above shows the differences in every domain. The highest emphasis is highlighted in green, the lowest in red. The graphs above visualize the differences in emphasis between the national newspapers. NRC Handelsblad underlines three areas of interests: politics, economy, and art and culture. de Volkskrant and nrc.next put emphasis on art and culture; de Volkskrant even slightly stronger, nrc.next a little less. Politics also receives more attention in these papers, although less than in NRC Handelsblad. However, the two papers give sports more space and economy less. Economy and sports are the two areas of interest that are dominant in De Telegraaf.

Table 67

Areas of interest text, images and headlines

NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf

National 61% 65% 72% 55% 63% 70% 71% 61% 63% International 39% 35% 28% 45% 37% 30% 29% 39% 37%

International issues are covered differently in the national newspapers. Almost half of the content of nrc.next is international news whereas the amount of international news in AD is less than a third.

Table 68

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In the figures above we did not distinguish between text, images and headlines. It is possible that the general picture changes if we do so. And it does. When we exclude images, the emphasis nrc.next puts on politics increases from 15% to 22%. In De Telegraaf the emphasis on the economy increases from 22 to 30%. In the table below, only the numbers that stand out are highlighted.

Table 69 Areas of interest – text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 20% 19% 9% 22% 19% 10% 12% 13% 15% Crime 3% 2% 3% 6% 2% 3% 3% 5% 2% Calamities 1% 1% 2% 0% 1% 2% 2% 3% 1% Mobility 0% 1% 2% 0% 1% 1% 2% 2% 5% Economy & personal 24% 12% 30% 9% 13% 11% 8% 12% 15% finances Sports 6% 12% 17% 11% 10% 27% 20% 17% 10% Science 7% 3% 2% 5% 3% 3% 4% 3% 2% Reflection on life 1% 3% 0% 2% 8% 0% 2% 0% 1% Education 2% 1% 1% 1% 3% 0% 0% 0% 1% Society 4% 7% 5% 5% 12% 4% 6% 9% 9% Health & fitness 2% 4% 2% 2% 2% 4% 1% 2% 1% Living 0% 0% 1% 2% 0% 2% 1% 1% 2% Travel 1% 2% 1% 1% 0% 3% 2% 2% 1% Art & culture 16% 19% 6% 16% 12% 8% 13% 14% 15% Media 10% 12% 11% 13% 11% 16% 17% 11% 16% Leisure 1% 0% 4% 2% 1% 2% 1% 2% 1% Celebrities 0% 1% 3% 1% 0% 3% 3% 3% 1% New products 1% 1% 1% 2% 0% 1% 1% 0% 2% Games & entertainment 1% 1% 2% 1% 0% 1% 2% 2% 0%

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Table 70 Areas of interest – IMAGE NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 19% 9% 6% 6% 13% 6% 8% 11% 9% Crime 1% 2% 1% 6% 2% 2% 0% 1% 1% Calamities 2% 4% 2% 7% 4% 2% 1% 3% 2% Mobility 2% 2% 3% 1% 3% 3% 3% 4% 5% Economy & personal 11% 4% 9% 3% 6% 5% 3% 4% 7% finances Sports 6% 13% 21% 10% 11% 34% 18% 21% 9% Science 8% 2% 4% 12% 6% 4% 1% 5% 1% Reflection on life 1% 1% 0% 0% 4% 0% 2% 0% 0% Education 0% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 1% 0% 2% Society 5% 10% 6% 14% 21% 7% 6% 6% 11% Health & fitness 2% 9% 0% 0% 5% 2% 3% 3% 0% Living 1% 0% 2% 7% 1% 1% 1% 0% 3% Travel 3% 1% 3% 0% 0% 5% 2% 0% 2% Art & culture 30% 31% 11% 20% 15% 7% 16% 23% 23% Media 3% 2% 6% 5% 1% 2% 5% 3% 4% Leisure 2% 1% 5% 1% 1% 4% 6% 2% 3% Celebrities 0% 1% 11% 2% 0% 7% 14% 6% 3% New products 1% 3% 0% 1% 0% 1% 2% 1% 2% Games & entertainment 2% 5% 9% 3% 7% 9% 10% 8% 14%

Table 71 Areas of interest – text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 66% 67% 74% 64% 68% 75% 74% 64% 68% International 34% 33% 26% 36% 32% 25% 26% 36% 32%

The use of images in national newspapers is what we expected from the previous table. ‘Politics’ is not a popular domain for photographers with NRC Handelsblad as an exception. AD puts an extraordinary emphasis on sports images: 34%. NRC Handelsblad and de Volkskrant stress the images of art and culture.

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Table 72 Areas of interest – IMAGE NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 47% 60% 70% 43% 48% 63% 65% 55% 55% International 53% 40% 31% 58% 52% 37% 36% 46% 45%

7.1.9.2 The supply of specific functions Comparing percentages, the national newspapers put a different emphasis on specific functions, the supply is diverse; 41% of the editorial space in nrc.next is for bare facts, Metro uses this function two-thirds more. 19% of nrc.next is overview, in Trouw this percentage is 35. In nrc.next 17% is emotion, in Spits 2%.

Table 73 Specific functions NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 50% 50% 51% 41% 44% 49% 59% 68% 51% Overview 25% 25% 34% 19% 35% 34% 24% 21% 30% Elucidation 8% 4% 2% 7% 5% 1% 3% 0,1% 4% Opinion 9% 10% 5% 8% 9% 3% 5% 4% 4% Advice and tips 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 3% 1% 1% Emotion 6% 7% 4% 17% 3% 7% 2% 3% 4% Entertainment 2% 4% 4% 6% 3% 5% 5% 4% 7%

The general picture changes if we look at the ranking instead of percentages. The next table - with an overview of the ranking - shows a perfect match in the top two. At the bottom of the list there is no perfect match, but much consensus. The most striking similarities are shown in a light brown color; the most striking differences are in red.

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Table 74 Specific functions NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant The bare facts 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Overview 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Elucidation 4 5 6 5 4 6 5 7 4 Opinion 3 3 3 4 3 5 3 3 4 Advice and tips 7 7 7 7 7 6 6 6 7 Emotion 5 4 4 3 5 3 7 5 4 Entertainment 6 5 4 6 5 4 3 3 3

Table 75

The pattern becomes more pronounced if we make a distinction between image, text and headlines. It becomes clear that the 17% emotion that was found in nrc.next was entirely the result of the way images are approached. More than a third of the pictures in nrc.next have the emotion function. This places nrc.next in a different category. In four newspapers, the share of emotion is less than 8%; in the other four national newspapers, the emotion function of pictures is between 10 and 18%. As a result, the number of articles with the function of emotion is relatively small and never exceeds 1% of all the articles. Six of the nine national newspapers have no headlines with the emotion function; no

270 Empirical data more than 1% of the headlines in two newspapers serve this function and only in nrc.next could a significant number of headlines be labeled as emotion.

Table 76 NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 41% 44% 43% 41% 30% 44% 51% 63% 42% Overview 32% 31% 45% 26% 46% 46% 31% 28% 43% Elucidation 12% 6% 2% 13% 8% 2% 4% 0% 7% Opinion 12% 16% 7% 14% 13% 6% 8% 7% 6% Advice and tips 1% 1% 1% 2% 1% 1% 4% 1% 1% Emotion 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 0% 1% 0% 1% Entertainment 1% 1% 2% 2% 1% 0% 2% 1% 1%

Table 77 NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 69% 61% 67% 41% 72% 55% 72% 77% 65% Overview 9% 13% 14% 12% 14% 19% 12% 8% 10% Elucidation 0% 0% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% Opinion 1% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Advice and tips 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Emotion 17% 18% 10% 34% 6% 15% 5% 7% 8% Entertainment 4% 8% 8% 9% 7% 11% 11% 9% 17%

Table 78 NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 84% 87% 92% 63% 87% 93% 89% 96% 90% Overview 2% 1% 3% 4% 1% 2% 0% 0% 0% Elucidation 6% 5% 1% 12% 2% 1% 1% 0% 0% Opinion 6% 5% 5% 12% 10% 3% 10% 2% 7% Emotion 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 1% 0% 1% 2% Entertainment 1% 1% 0% 8% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Not clear 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

7.1.9.3 The supply of perspectives A text or an image is called practical if it can be used as a guide for action. About a fifth of the editorial content of national newspapers has a practical perspective, except for the editorial contents of nrc.next and

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Metro that are less practical. If we look at images, text and headlines separately, it shows that this difference is due to text. The practical perspective of images is more common in De Pers - and to a lesser extent in AD - than in other national papers.

Table 79 Perspectives NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 81% 81% 82% 88% 84% 81% 82% 87% 84% Practical perspective 19% 19% 19% 12% 16% 19% 18% 13% 16%

Table 80

Table 81 Perspectives – TEXT NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 72% 72% 72% 76% 78% 70% 72% 81% 81% Practical perspective 28% 28% 28% 24% 22% 30% 28% 19% 20%

Table 82 Perspectives – IMAGE NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 97% 94% 92% 97% 92% 89% 94% 92% 84% Practical perspective 3% 6% 9% 3% 9% 11% 6% 9% 16%

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Table 83 Perspectives – HEADLINES NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 100% 100% 100% 99% 100% 100% 100% 100% 99% Practical perspective 0% 0% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 1% 1%

The second cluster of perspectives shows the dominance of the social perspective. The other two are treated differently in the various national newspapers. In AD, the human perspective gets three times more space than in nrc.next. In NRC Handelsblad, the institutional perspective gets more than twice the space it gets in AD. This picture remains more or less the same if we distinguish between text, image and headlines.

Table 84 Perspectives NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 8% 14% 12% 5% 10% 15% 12% 7% 9% Social perspective 72% 68% 76% 79% 74% 75% 75% 78% 75% Institutional perspective 19% 15% 10% 15% 15% 8% 11% 13% 14%

Table 85

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Table 86 Perspectives – TEXT NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 5% 11% 8% 4% 6% 11% 10% 7% 7% Social perspective 72% 70% 81% 74% 76% 79% 75% 79% 75% Institutional perspective 22% 20% 11% 23% 18% 10% 15% 15% 19%

Table 87 Perspectives – IMAGE NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 14% 23% 21% 7% 20% 22% 18% 6% 15% Social perspective 74% 72% 74% 87% 73% 73% 79% 84% 81% Institutional perspective 11% 5% 5% 6% 8% 5% 3% 10% 3%

Table 88 Perspectives – HEADLINES NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 4% 6% 7% 2% 2% 8% 4% 8% 3% Social perspective 59% 51% 64% 67% 64% 64% 63% 64% 65% Institutional perspective 22% 22% 17% 22% 21% 11% 15% 16% 19%

7.1.9.4 The size of text and images There is substantial difference in the size of articles in the national papers in the Netherlands. In Metro, the free daily, we found that 58% of the articles were relatively small (< 100cm2) and 8% relatively large (> 300 cm2). In de Volkskrant 18% were small and 31% large. Most of the dailies put the emphasis on the medium-sized articles except Metro and AD.

Table 89 Text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 100 cm2) 22% 18% 30% 34% 24% 35% 43% 58% 32% Medium (100-300 45% 51% 43% 46% 44% 33% 44% 35% 51% cm2) Large (> 300 cm2) 33% 31% 27% 21% 32% 32% 13% 8% 18%

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Table 90

Headlines are not equally distributed either. De Telegraaf carries most of the large headlines. (> 60cm2) NRC Handelsblad prefers the medium size (10-60 cm2).

Table 91 Headline NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 10 cm2) 15% 12% 9% 20% 16% 12% 26% 22% 18% Medium (10-60 cm2) 71% 63% 34% 39% 65% 29% 63% 53% 51% Large (> 60 cm2) 15% 25% 57% 41% 19% 59% 11% 26% 32%

Table 92

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We found substantial differences in the size of images, mainly photographs. As shown in the tables below, we see that Metro prefers small pictures (< 100 cm2), whereas de Volkskrant prefers to print photos larger (> 300 cm2). nrc.next is very clear about the importance of images. With a mix of 7% small and 74% large, the paper differs remarkably from the other newspapers.

Table 93 Image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 100 cm2) 13% 13% 27% 7% 14% 15% 22% 37% 27% Medium (100-300 24% 17% 32% 20% 45% 20% 62% 54% 37% cm2) Large (> 300 cm2) 64% 70% 41% 74% 42% 65% 16% 9% 36%

Table 94

7.1.9.5 Personified and composed article A personified article makes a subject more tangible. The reader can see the consequences for an individual. The table below shows that in nrc. next, almost a fifth of the content consists of personified articles. Again, this paper shows a different approach than most of the other papers. There is almost six times more room for personified articles in the nrc. next than in De Telegraaf.

276 Empirical data Table 95 Personified NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Personified 14% 13% 3% 17% 7% 8% 6% 9% 13% Not personified 86% 87% 97% 83% 94% 92% 94% 91% 87% In a composed production, a larger article is replaced by several smaller ones. In the AD, 20% of the paper is a composed production. In De Telegraaf it is 3%; in de Volkskrant and nrc.next around 10% .

Table 96 Composed production NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Composed production 7% 10% 3% 11% 8% 19% 7% 5% 5% No composed 93% 90% 97% 89% 92% 82% 94% 95% 95% production

7.1.10 The front page The front page is the newspaper’s signpost. It gives readers a first impression what to expect. It is the reflection of the paper’s identity. There is a substantial difference in type of text and images that fill the front pages of national newspapers. In NRC Handelsblad, more than half of the areas of interest are about politics; 54% to be precise. In nrc.next, 5% of the front page is com- prised of political topics. de Volkskrant carries fewer political pictures than NRC Handelsblad and Trouw, but more than the AD and the two free papers Metro and Spits. The other free paper - De Pers – dedicates the same attention to politics as de Volkskrant and the AD. The front pages of de Volkskrant, Trouw and Metro are more focused on social issues than the front pages of the other national newspapers. An issue is labeled as a social issue if it is - or is expected to be - the subject of discourse in society; for example, the quality of education, reading habits, the proliferation of Internet and the development of a multicultural society.

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Table 97 Areas of interest front page, text, image and headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 54% 28% 19% 5% 44% 27% 13% 21% 28% Crime 5% 6% 9% 18% 8% 3% 8% 1% 8% Calamities 2% 6% 1% 0% 7% 12% 0% 6% 0% Mobility 0% 1% 8% 0% 0% 8% 5% 5% 16% Economy & personal finances 14% 6% 11% 1% 11% 8% 4% 6% 19% Sports 2% 4% 15% 3% 1% 21% 2% 14% 1% Science 2% 2% 2% 1% 1% 0% 1% 1% 0% Reflection on life 5% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Education 0% 7% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Society 2% 16% 3% 1% 17% 8% 11% 17% 8% Health & fitness 1% 3% 3% 0% 9% 1% 2% 10% 0% Living 0% 0% 0% 16% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Travel 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% Art & culture 10% 10% 5% 34% 0% 1% 31% 13% 11% Media 2% 7% 12% 18% 0% 6% 12% 4% 1% Leisure 0% 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 9% 0% 2% Celebrities 0% 1% 9% 0% 0% 4% 2% 2% 4% New products 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Games & entertainment 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

The tables below eluminate the fact that items within the political realm get more attention on the front page than in the rest of the paper, with nrc.next as the only exception. The table below shows that politics is the only area of interest that gets more attention on the front page of NRC Handelsblad than in the rest of the paper. The front page of NRC Handelsblad is made up of politics by more than half. For the entire newspaper this percentage is 20, more than any other national newspaper. Trouw is definitely a runner-up. Almost half of its front page is dedicated to politics; for the entire newspaper the percentage is 17. Some area of interest, such as economy, sports, arts and culture and media get less attention on the front page than in the paper as a whole. nrc.next and Spits are an exception to this general tendency.

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Table 98 front page(f) and entire newspaper Areas of interest NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf F P F P F P F P F P F P F P F P F P Politics 54 20 28 16 19 9 5 15 44 17 27 8 13 10 21 13 28 13 Crime 5 2 6 2 9 3 18 6 8 2 3 3 8 2 1 4 8 2 Calamities 2 1 6 2 1 2 0 4 7 2 12 2 0 1 6 3 0 1 Economy 14 20 6 9 11 22 1 6 11 11 8 8 4 7 6 9 19 12 Sports 2 7 4 12 15 19 3 10 1 11 21 31 2 19 14 18 1 10 Society 2 4 16 8 3 5 1 9 17 15 8 6 11 6 17 8 8 9 Health & fitness 1 2 3 5 3 1 0 1 9 3 1 3 2 2 10 3 0 0,4 Art & culture 10 20 10 23 5 7 34 18 0 13 1 8 31 14 13 16 11 18 Media 2 8 7 8 12 8 18 9 0 7 6 9 12 12 4 7 1 11 f = front page, p = entire paper; the numbers in the table are percentages

Table 99

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We have already mentioned that the function of bare facts is dominant in national newspapers in the Netherlands. On the front page this dominance becomes more pronounced as we can see in the next table. Table 100 Front page, Areas of interest all content NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 49% 69% 98% 36% 32% 96% 82% 97% 77% International 51% 31% 2% 64% 68% 4% 18% 3% 23%

Table 101 Front page, Specific functions all content NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 60% 82% 85% 81% 61% 76% 86% 87% 72% Overview 16% 8% 10% 0% 30% 23% 10% 3% 23% Elucidation 0% 2% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Opinion 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 1% 4% 0% 0% Advice and tips 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Emotion 22% 1% 5% 15% 9% 0% 0% 11% 2% Entertainment 2% 7% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 3%

Table 102 Front page, Perspectives all content NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 91% 85% 91% 85% 93% 91% 88% 95% 91% Practical perspective 9% 16% 9% 15% 7% 9% 12% 5% 9% NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 7% 8% 7% 0% 4% 3% 3% 1% 4% Social perspective 55% 63% 64% 76% 58% 73% 80% 79% 53% Institutional 38% 27% 28% 22% 38% 25% 16% 19% 42% perspective

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Table 103 Front page, Areas of interest - text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 52% 35% 23% 28% 41% 37% 23% 17% 38% Crime 6% 8% 15% 13% 15% 4% 9% 4% 0% Calamities 4% 1% 2% 0% 1% 9% 0% 12% 0% Mobility 0% 1% 4% 0% 1% 2% 11% 12% 8% Economy & personal finances 22% 11% 14% 4% 20% 13% 5% 13% 20% Sports 2% 3% 17% 11% 0% 10% 4% 5% 1% Science 3% 3% 3% 3% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% Reflection 0% 1% 0% 2% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% Education 0% 4% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Society 3% 9% 3% 3% 5% 1% 4% 22% 17% Health & fitness 1% 3% 4% 0% 14% 3% 4% 1% 0% Living 0% 0% 0% 14% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Travel 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% Art & culture 3% 10% 2% 10% 0% 2% 15% 7% 12% Media 3% 9% 9% 6% 0% 13% 20% 6% 1% Leisure 0% 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% Celebrities 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 5% 2% 2% 0% New products 0% 2% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Games & entertainment 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

In previous paragraphs we showed that more than half of the front page content of NRC Handelsblad is about politics. If we take only text into consideration, in most papers this percentage stays more or less the same. nrc.next is the exception, where attention to politics on the front page increases to 28% if we take only text into consideration; but it disappears completely if we focus on image. There are no pictures of politics and politicians on the front page of nrc.next.

Table 104 Front page, Areas of interest Text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 55% 73% 96% 46% 55% 94% 88% 87% 79% International 45% 27% 4% 54% 45% 6% 12% 13% 21%

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Table 105 Front page Specific functions text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 69% 79% 81% 77% 50% 62% 80% 96% 49% Overview 31% 14% 19% 0% 49% 36% 19% 3% 51% Elucidation 0% 4% 0% 14% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% Opinion 0% 0% 0% 1% 0% 3% 1% 0% 0% Advice and tips 0% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Emotion 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Entertainment 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

Table 106 Front page, Perspectives text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 81% 72% 83% 5% 86% 81% 76% 84% 86% Practical perspective 19% 28% 17% 95% 14% 19% 24% 16% 14%

Table 107 Front page, Perspectives text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 0% 7% 3% 0% 1% 6% 6% 3% 8% Social perspective 45% 57% 60% 62% 58% 56% 61% 89% 40% Institutional perspective 55% 36% 37% 35% 41% 38% 31% 9% 51%

Table 108 Front page, Areas of interest image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 57% 15% 9% 0% 53% 15% 0% 24% 3% Crime 0% 3% 0% 20% 0% 0% 0% 0% 21% Calamities 0% 16% 0% 0% 14% 15% 0% 0% 0% Mobility 1% 0% 16% 0% 0% 15% 0% 0% 30% Economy & personal 2% 0% 6% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 16% finances Sports 1% 4% 17% 0% 1% 34% 0% 21% 0% Science 1% 0% 2% 1% 0% 0% 1% 1% 0% Reflection on life 12% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Education 0% 16% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

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Society 0% 17% 2% 0% 32% 15% 21% 15% 0% Health & fitness 1% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 16% 0% Living 0% 0% 0% 18% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Travel 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Art & culture 20% 16% 12% 41% 0% 1% 56% 18% 12% Media 2% 7% 15% 20% 0% 0% 0% 3% 0% Leisure 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 20% 0% 5% Celebrities 0% 1% 22% 0% 0% 4% 2% 2% 13% New products 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Games & 3% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% entertainment

The pictures on the front page in De Telegraaf, Metro and AD are always about national topics. The front page pictures in Trouw are almost entirely international. The pictures on the front page of national newspapers are mainly factual with the exception of NRC Handelsblad. There are no institutional perspectives in the front page image of Spits. In Trouw, more than a third of the front page image is institutional.

Table 109 Areas of interest front page image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 40% 63% 100% 33% 3% 97% 68% 99% 68% International 60% 37% 0% 67% 97% 3% 32% 1% 32%

Table 110 Specific functions front page image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 39% 80% 83% 81% 64% 80% 97% 79% 85% Overview 2% 2% 3% 0% 14% 20% 3% 3% 0% Elucidation 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Opinion 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Advice and tips 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Emotion 54% 0% 14% 19% 22% 0% 0% 17% 5% Entertainment 5% 16% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 10%

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Table 111 Perspectives front page image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 100% 99% 97% 100% 100% 97% 97% 98% 95% Practical perspective 0% 1% 3% 0% 0% 3% 3% 2% 5%

Table 112 Perspectives front page image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 16% 13% 14% 0% 10% 0% 0% 1% 0% Social perspective 70% 78% 77% 80% 55% 83% 100% 76% 84% Institutional perspective 14% 9% 10% 20% 35% 16% 0% 23% 16%

As is shown in the tables below, the front page headlines of nrc.next and Trouw stand out. They put more emphasis on international news, and dedicate more space to the function of emotion. Trouw runs fewer bare facts and more overview than the other national newspapers. Together with NRC Handelsblad and De Pers, they put more emphasis on the institutional perspective.

Table 113 Areas of interest front page Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Politics 48% 27% 25% 14% 24% 40% 21% 17% 45% Crime 19% 4% 10% 9% 11% 9% 26% 1% 5% Calamities 0% 1% 0% 0% 12% 11% 1% 22% 0% Mobility 0% 0% 6% 0% 0% 2% 0% 16% 15% Economy & personal finances 18% 4% 12% 4% 8% 22% 13% 17% 20% Sports 4% 4% 11% 11% 0% 5% 0% 0% 1% Science 3% 4% 0% 2% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% Reflection on life 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Education 0% 3% 1% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Society 2% 35% 2% 6% 21% 2% 3% 21% 0% Health & fitness 2% 3% 7% 0% 17% 0% 3% 1% 0% Living 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Travel 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Art & culture 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 6% 4% 8%

284 Empirical data

Media 0% 2% 14% 22% 0% 9% 21% 1% 0% Leisure 0% 0% 0% 0% 4% 0% 0% 0% 0% Celebrities 0% 0% 6% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 1% New products 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Games & entertainment 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Not clear 2% 11% 4% 28% 4% 0% 5% 0% 4%

Table 114 Areas of interest front page Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf National 55% 56% 99% 47% 27% 96% 92% 100% 80% International 45% 44% 1% 53% 73% 4% 8% 0% 20%

Table 115 Perspectives front page Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf General perspective 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 93% Practical perspective 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 7%

Table 116 Specific functions front page Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf The bare facts 94% 100% 99% 94% 100% 100% 71% 100% 100% Overview 6% 0% 0% 4% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Elucidation 0% 0% 0% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Opinion 0% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 29% 0% 0% Advice and tips 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Emotion 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Entertainment 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Not clear 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%

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Table 117 Perspectives front page Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Human perspective 0% 3% 8% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Social perspective 48% 60% 54% 54% 64% 80% 77% 76% 29% Institutional perspective 48% 27% 36% 19% 32% 16% 18% 19% 64%

The national newspapers could be categorized into three groups. There is a group of papers with a similar preference for medium and small. A second group with an emphasis on small (< 10 cm2). And the third group with an emphasis on medium (10-60 cm2) headlines on the front page. They differentiate between small and medium with the emphasis on medium headlines. Metro, De Pers and De Telegraaf use more large headlines. Almost all the images of the nrc.next front page are classified as large, due to the fact that the front page of nrc.next is always a picture. On the front page of Metro all articles are smaller than 100 cm2; 81% is between 100 and 300 cm². Only 19% of the front page articles of Trouw are of that size. No national newspaper runs long stories (> 300 cm2) on their front page. But this is the only similarity where article size is concerned. The national newspapers could be categorized into three groups. There is a group of papers with a similar preference for medium and small front page articles. A second group has an emphasis on small (< 100 cm2) and the third group places an emphasis on medium (100-300 cm2) articles on the front page.

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Table 118 Front Page National newspapers Size of text, headlines and images Text NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 100 cm2) 52% 44% 68% 100% 19% 55% 82% 100% 24% Medium (100-300 48% 56% 32% 0% 81% 45% 19% 0% 76% cm2) Large (> 300 cm2) 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% Headlines NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 10 cm2) 25% 14% 5% 50% 3% 8% 12% 9% 7% Medium (10-60 cm2) 68% 45% 42% 51% 84% 45% 48% 22% 18% Large (> 60 cm2) 7% 41% 53% 0% 14% 47% 40% 69% 75% Image NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Small (< 100 cm2) 20% 37% 26% 5% 6% 15% 9% 17% 23% Medium (100-300 16% 19% 58% 0% 94% 54% 91% 29% 77% cm2) Large (> 300 cm2) 64% 44% 16% 95% 0% 31% 0% 54% 0% The personalization of news on the front page

National newspapers differ in their approach toward personalization of news. In that case, an individual case is used as an example of an abstract phenomenon. De Telegraaf does not use this technique on the front page, whereas 35% of the NRC Handelsblad front page is personalized.

Table 119 Personified NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Spits Metro De Pers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf Personified 35% 16% 0% - 18% 16% 0% - 33% Not personified 65% 84% 100% - 82% 84% 100% - 67%

7.1.11 Layout and the perception of supply We labeled the basic elements that are used as building blocks for the layout as layout sections, units or modules. The elements are shaped as squares, rectangles, circles or ovals. They can be long, short, small

287 Chapter 7 or wide. The content of the elements could be plain, or even ostenta- tious. In that case, the headlines shout from the page in a typeface that is mostly sans serif, bold and big. We describe the difference in layout according to three criteria (1) the frequency of elements, (2) the variation of the elements and (3) the intensity of the elements. Is the number of elements of a newspaper page relatively high or small? Are the elements similar in shape or is there variation? Is the intensity of an element high or low? It is high if the designer has made abundant use of images, color, large letters, bold letters and sans serif fonts (see chapter 6).

Image 5 Layout A Layout B Layout C

The expectation of the topics that are emphasized in a newspaper differs significantly from one layout to the other. In a paper that is designed according to layout A, readers expect to find stories about politics and economy. A layout B paper is expected to stress calamities, art and culture. And layout C cohabits with news on celebrities.

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Table 120 A B C Politics 59% 29% 18% Crime 19% 26% 20% Calamities 22% 35% 29% Mobility 5% 9% 6% Economy & personal finances 35% 17% 12% Sports 11% 13% 16% Science 12% 8% 6% Health & fitness 7% 9% 11% Living 3% 6% 8% Travel 3% 6% 8% Art & culture 13% 21% 16% Education 5% 4% 5% Celebrities 3% 10% 33% Games & entertainment 4% 5% 12%

The expectation of dominant functions and perspectives differs in connection with layout as well. Overview and elucidation are the dominant functions that readers expect to find in a paper with layout A. Opinion and advice go together with layout B; whereas emotion and entertainment get emphasis in layout C.

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Diagram 7

Table 121 A B C The bare facts 34% 24% 26% Overview 59% 44% 28% Elucidation 45% 37% 23% Opinion 19% 29% 26% Advice and tips 17% 29% 29% Emotion 20% 27% 33% Entertainment 6% 11% 34%

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Diagram 8

There is a clear correlation between layout and the perception of supplied perspectives. Layout A is expected to be linked to the social and institutional perspective. The social perspective is expected to be emphasized in layout B. And layout C is expected to emphasize the human perspective.

Table 122 A B C Human perspective 16% 30% 60% Social perspective 44% 58% 31% Institutional perspective 40% 12% 10%

7.1.12 Aspiration and Behavior It is conceivable that the stated preferences are not a reflection of what people actually read. They answered what they think they should read, not what they actually read. This bias is the consequence of two problems: the problem of social desirability in survey research and the weakness of will. The first problem has its roots in the conformation to

291 Chapter 7 reference group behavior. The second problem is the consequence of a personal struggle: the desire not to act according to one’s own manifest values. “I should do A, because I believe in X, but I did B although B is not according to X.” “I should prefer reading this type of article first, but in practice I start reading that type of article.” Before we asked the respondents to rank areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives according to both their aspirations and behavior we asked an introductory question in order to legitimize the original question. As an introduction we asked: “It can happen that you want to do something you think it is very important and yet you don’t do it. This can happen when reading a paper. You don’t start to read the article you actually should start to read. Do you recognize this situation?” Of course this is a leading question. But this is one of the rare cases where it should be leading. We want to know whether the respondent agrees or disagrees with a controversial view that is put forward. If the respondent gives a positive answer to the question, it implies that he or she admits to being inconsistent. Most people do not want to be seen as inconsistent. They need some kind of courage to admit inconsistency. But the way the question is introduced helps the respondent to be courageous. It is as if the researcher is saying: “Don’t be afraid, if you are inconsistent. Don’t feel ashamed, you’re not the only one who is inconsistent.” If respondents answer the question: “Do you recognize this situation?” with a ‘yes’ they accept the fact that there is a difference between what should be done and what actually is done, they acknowledge the fact that some things should be done in theory, but are done differently in practice. They accept their inconsistency, they acknowledge the weakness of will. Because this is the case, it is possible to ask the original question. So we asked respondents to rank the top three stories that should be read right away and the top three stories the respondent actually starts to read. Based on this ranking we made two lists. The first one ranks the aspiration, the second one the actual behavior.

As is shown in the table below, crime, sports, media, new products, games and relaxation have more priority in practice than in theory. Politics, economy, science, education, art and culture are areas of interest with a high level of aspiration.

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Table 123 The weakness of will areas of interest Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Politics 1 5 Health & fitness 12 12 Crime 5 2 Living 18 16 Disasters, accidents and 2 1 Travel 14 11 calamities Mobility 10 14 Art & culture 11 19 Economy 4 13 Media 13 8 Sports 6 3 Leisure 19 10 Science 7 15 Celebrities 17 7 Reflection 8 17 New products 16 9 Education 9 18 Games & relaxation 15 6 Society 3 4 N = 4155

Table 124

The table below shows that, in the youngest age category, the difference between aspiration and actual behavior stands out as far as areas of interest are concerned. Apart from that we may conclude that age does not make a difference in the two lists.

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Table 125 The weakness of will areas of interest 13-24 (n=657) 25-34 (n=657) 35-49 (n=1,178) 50-64 (n=1,033) > 65 (n=630) Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Politics 1 14 1 9 1 5 1 4 1 4 Crime 3 2 3 2 5 2 6 2 6 2 Disasters 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 Mobility 11 19 9 18 10 10 9 9 11 12 Economy 5 17 4 13 4 9 4 13 3 10 Sports 8 3 6 3 7 3 5 3 5 3 Science 6 10 7 11 6 16 8 14 8 16 Reflection 8 13 10 16 8 18 7 19 7 14 Education 7 15 8 16 9 17 10 18 9 19 Society 4 9 5 4 3 4 3 5 4 5 Health & fitness 12 11 11 15 11 13 12 7 13 7 Living 15 18 18 14 18 14 14 16 19 15 Travel 15 12 11 12 15 14 15 6 13 6 Art & culture 10 16 14 18 12 19 11 17 9 18 Media 13 7 16 10 13 10 13 8 12 9 Leisure 18 7 19 5 18 12 19 12 17 13 Celebrities 19 6 16 7 16 6 17 10 15 11 New products 17 5 11 8 17 7 18 14 16 17 Games & 14 4 14 6 14 8 15 11 18 8 relaxation

For the population at large, the survey shows a discrepancy between aspiration and behavior in six of the seven specific functions. The biggest difference is in respect to the function of emotion. This function is at top of the behavior list, but near the bottom of the list that ranks aspiration. Articles with an emotion function are the first to be read, but should be read in fifth place. Overview and elucidation top the aspiration ranking, but take a middle and low position in the behavior ranking.

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Table 126

Table 127 The weakness of will specific functions Aspiration Behavior Bare facts 3 2 Overview 1 3 Elucidation 2 5 Opinion 6 7 Advice 4 6 Emotion 5 1 Entertainment 7 4

As far as entertainment is concerned, there is a big difference in the aspiration ranking between the youngest and the oldest age categories. The other specific functions are more or less equally distributed among the different age groups.

Table 128 The weakness of will Specific functions 13-24 (n=657) 25-34 (n=657) 35-49 (n=1,178) 50-64 (n=1,033) > 65 (n=630) Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Bare facts 3 4 3 3 2 2 3 1 3 2 Overview 2 3 1 1 1 3 1 3 1 3 Elucidation 1 5 2 6 3 5 2 5 2 4 Opinion 6 7 7 7 6 7 6 7 6 7 Advice 4 6 4 5 4 6 4 6 5 5 Emotion 5 2 5 2 5 1 5 2 4 1 Entertainment 7 1 6 4 7 4 7 4 7 6

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Table 129 The weakness of will Perspectives Aspiration Behavior Practical perspective 1 1 General perspective 2 2

Table 130 The weakness of will Perspectives 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Practical 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 perspective General 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 perspective

Table 131 The weakness of will Perspectives Aspiration Behavior Human perspective 2 1 Social perspective 1 2 Institutional perspective 3 3

Table 132 The weakness of will Perspectives 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Aspiration Behavior Human perspective 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 Social perspective 1 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 Institutional 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 perspective

7.2 Brand, habit and tradition

The easy way to define brand is to refer to the way it was originally used: as nothing more than a synonym for a product’s name. Sometimes the users gave it a touch of complexity. In that case, not any product name could be a brand; only if the product was recognized in a split second, because of something unique and recognizable, such as the shape, the design, the color, the logo, or whatever makes the product stand out.

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The difficult way to define brand is to polish this abstract approach and formulate what it does instead of what it is. Tangible features like packaging, a shape, a logo or a color are irrelevant in this case. One of the relevant options is to consider a brand as the institutionalized expectation of a product - positive or negative. The name of the newspaper, or the mere logo, even the color stirs feelings of gratification or dissatisfaction, even joy or disgust. A brand is what customers expect to get. Can they trust the paper, or do they take an unreliable approach into account; does the paper do what it promises, or is disappointment the rule; is the newspaper different from other papers, unique, in a class of its own, an example for other newspapers, a role model, or is it plain, common, drowning in mediocrity? Until now we had the consumer’s perspective: brand as a construction of the consumer’s social reality. Producers use brand in a different way. A producer’s brand does not describe what customers expect, but what the producer wants them to expect. This different way of looking at the concept of brand is captured in different terms: brand image and brand identity. The object is the same and so is the function. However, the perspective is different. We measured brand using the engagement potential ratings scale of the Gallup organization.246

Table 133 Alpha ##V## is a name I can always trust There is no other newspaper quite like ##V## always delivers on what they promise ##V## ##V## is a highly respected brand name I can’t imagine a world without ##V## I know what ##V## stands for and what makes them ##V## is the perfect paper for people like 0.870 different me ##V## sets the standards for all other brands to follow Readers rave about how great ##V## is I can easily imagine myself as a ##V## owner

The reliability of the scale was tested using the SPSS application of Cronbach’s alpha. The ten statements had an a of 0.9, which means that the answers that were given by the 4,155 respondents were consistent; the 10 statements measured one variable.

7.2.1 Brand score Respondents could strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree with the statements that measured brand image. The range of pos-

297 Chapter 7 sible results was therefore defined by two extremes: strongly agree or strongly disagree. In order to determine how the answers are distributed between those extremes we quantified them: strongly agree = 2, strongly disagree = -2, agree = 1, disagree = -1. Adding up the results of the 10 statements gives the number we call the brand score. To define a different attitude towards the brand of a national newspaper we distinguished four types of newspaper readers based on their brand score:

Table 134 Strong positive Positive Negative Strong negative 20-15 15-10 10-5 5-0

Table 135 Brand scores national titles paid papers Total 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 Strong positive 10% 5% 12% 9% 17% 6% NRC Positive 64% 58% 60% 73% 60% 94% Handelsblad Negative 25% 35% 27% 18% 23% 0% Strong negative 1% 2% 1% 0% 0% 0% Strong positive 5% 2% 2% 5% 10% 0% Positive 63% 54% 70% 59% 67% 74% de Volkskrant Negative 31% 43% 25% 34% 22% 26% Strong negative 2% 1% 3% 2% 2% 0% Strong positive 7% 5% 1% 2% 10% 15% Positive 46% 43% 52% 37% 51% 52% De Telegraaf Negative 45% 52% 46% 58% 37% 31% Strong negative 2% 0% 1% 3% 2% 3% Strong positive 4% 3% 4% 8% 4% 0% Positive 64% 58% 71% 63% 67% 67% nrc.next Negative 31% 37% 24% 29% 27% 33% Strong negative 2% 3% 1% 0% 2% 0% Strong positive 10% 1% 7% 13% 14% 25% Positive 63% 62% 64% 64% 62% 67% Trouw Negative 26% 35% 26% 22% 23% 8% Strong negative 2% 1% 3% 1% 1% 0% Strong positive 5% 10% 7% 0% 7% 6% Positive 52% 38% 48% 62% 56% 47% AD Negative 41% 52% 42% 36% 37% 44% Strong negative 2% 0% 3% 2% 0% 3%

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Table 136 Brand scores national titles free papers Total 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 Positive 45% 40% 54% 47% 43% 42% Negative 49% 52% 38% 50% 53% 58% Strong negative 1% 1% 2% 2% 2% 0% Strong positive 4% 5% 3% 4% 3% 3% Positive 48% 51% 47% 40% 59% 45% Metro Negative 47% 42% 50% 54% 38% 52% Strong negative 1% 2% 0% 2% 0% 0% Strong positive 3% 0% 9% 3% 0% 0% Positive 49% 60% 50% 36% 56% 55% De Pers Negative 45% 33% 41% 61% 31% 46% Strong negative 3% 7% 0% 0% 13% 0%

Focusing on the paid dailies, the readers of De Telegraaf and AD are the most negative about their brand - almost half of them belong to the negative category. Their brand image is similar to that of the free papers. It is remarkable that a quarter to a third of the subscribers have a negative brand image of their paper. It also stands out that differences between the papers seem to be smaller than the differences between age groups.

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Table 137

Table 138 Brand score NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers (n=333) (n=350) (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) Strong positive 20% 12% 14% 10% 20% 9% Positive 74% 75% 66% 77% 67% 80% Negative 5% 13% 19% 12% 12% 11% Strong negative 1% 1% 0% 1% 1% 0%

Brand score Non-paying NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD readers (n=70) (n=56) (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) Strong positive 13% 5% 2% 10% 11% 6% Positive 71% 63% 58% 64% 71% 65% Negative 14% 32% 39% 25% 18% 27% Strong negative 1% 0% 2% 1% 0% 2%

7.2.2 Habitscore Reading a newspaper out of habit is not an act of analytical reflection. It is not the result of a conscious choice. It is not to be considered as behavior that is planned. Habit is a recurring act that is triggered by the context that covaries with past experience a particular place, a particular person. An act that happens out of habit occurs without

300 Empirical data weighing up the pros and the cons. Habit is part of a daily routine. Wood uses the word automaticity.247 Our objective was to construct a scale with as few statements as possible. Ultimately we decided to use four: a statement about routine, a statements that relates habit to a particular time, a statement about priority and one about the importance reading a newspaper. We distinguished habit from ritual and tradition. Habit lacks the symbolic element that is the essential dimension in the concept of ritual. Tradition has a broad time span that includes socialization. Again we used Cronbach’s Alpha to determine the scale’s reliability. Statements with a factor loading of less than 0.6 were discarded, resulting in an alpha of 0.88.248

Table 139 Habit Alpha

Of all the information I get during a day most of the time it is the newspaper that I read first. It’s almost never happens that I skip to read the newspaper. Reading a newspaper is part of my daily routine. 0.88 A day without a newspaper is not complete I always read a newspaper at the same hour of the day.

The scores of the individual statements were added up, rendering one score for habits and one for tradition. The habit scores as well as the scores for tradition were split into four categories: very strong, strong, weak and very weak. The table below shows that habit varies strongly with age: the group of people with very strong habit is six times larger for those over 65 than for those between the ages of 25 and 34. Gender seem to make no difference.

Table 140 Habit NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4,155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Very strong 14% 6% 5% 8% 23% 31% Strong 28% 22% 22% 26% 34% 35% Weak 31% 41% 35% 34% 26% 22% Very weak 27% 32% 39% 32% 18% 12% (strong=reading a newspaper out of habit, weak=not reading a newspaper out of habit)

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Table 141

Table 142 Habit Male Female (n=2,072) (n=2,083) Very strong 15% 14% Strong 30% 26% Weak 31% 31% Very weak 24% 29% The group of people with a very strong habit of reading a newspaper is substantially smaller you read only free papers.

Table 143 Habit National dailies (n=1,286) Local dailies (n=1,665) Free papers (n=835) Very strong 18% 19% 4% Strong 33% 32% 20% Weak 29% 27% 41% Very weak 20% 22% 35% The group of people with a very strong habit of reading a newspaper is four times larger among readers of De Telegraaf than of nrc.next and is more than twice as large among readers of de Volkskrant than of the readers of NRC Handelsblad.

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Table 144 Habit NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=407) (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) (n=200) Very strong 11% 24% 31% 7% 22% 24% Strong 47% 37% 42% 41% 44% 42% Weak 27%+ 27% 21% 40% 27% 26% Very weak 15% 13% 5% 13% 7% 8%

Table 145 Habit NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) (n=206) Very strong 7% 7% 5% 5% 7% 10% Strong 24% 30% 19% 26% 28% 25% Weak 40% 34% 41% 36% 36% 32% Very weak 29% 29% 35% 33% 29% 34%

Among the readers that pay for their paper, the number of readers of nrc.next with a very strong habit of reading a new newspaper is much smaller than the number of readers of De Telegraaf.

Table 146 Habit NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) (n=333) (n=350) Very strong 10% 17% 23% 7% 17% 20% Strong 41% 34% 35% 36% 38% 35% Weak 29% 30% 27% 39% 31% 30% Very weak 20% 18% 14% 18% 14% 16%

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Table 147 Habit NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) (n=70) (n=56) Very strong 4% 5% 6% 2% 5% 8% Strong 11% 29% 19% 24% 29% 27% Weak 53% 29% 40% 35% 34% 27% Very weak 31% 38% 36% 39% 33% 39%

The group of readers with a very strong habit is larger among the paying readers than among the non-paying ones.

Table 148

Table 149 Habit Spits Metro De Pers (n=284) (n=368) (n=97) Very strong 4% 4% 3% Strong 18% 19% 27% Weak 41% 43% 37% Very weak 37% 34% 33%

304 Empirical data

7.2.3 Tradition Reading a newspaper out of tradition is not the result of a conscious choice either. If tradition is involved, there is no need for contemplation as the act of buying a newspaper is self-evident, “it goes without saying”, “I learned it growing up”. At this point we arrived at the nucleus of the difference between tradition and habit. Tradition is a social and cultural phenomena whereas habit lingers in the personal sphere. Tradition is learned during the process of institutionalization and socialization. It is passed on from one generation to another whereas habit is a broader concept that is not necessarily linked to the values and norms of a particular group or category. An individual can pick up a habit, just because he or she gets used to a particular behavior. The impact of tradition may change over time and place. Differences among individuals may correlate with generation and reference group. Specific groups or categories are more or less influenced by transi- tion than other groups or categories. Raaijmakers based her study on training schoolchildren to read newspapers on the assumption that the tradition of reading a newspaper is ‘learned’ when one is growing up.249 The results of our study suggest that there is an empirical basis for this assumption. Among the people with a very strong tradition the number of newspaper readers over the age of 65 is twice as large as the group between 25 and 50, whereas the population share of 65+ is twice as small as the group between 25 and 50.

Table 150 Tradition NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4,155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Very strong 8% 8% 6% 5% 8% 13% Strong 25% 28% 25% 23% 25% 23% Weak 35% 37% 36% 35% 35% 32% Very weak 33% 27% 33% 36% 32% 32%

The statements that were used to measure tradition had a Cronbach alpha of 0.70. Gender does not make a difference where the tradition of buying a newspaper is concerned; reading a free paper does.

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Table 151 Tradition Male (n=2,072) Female (n=2,083) Very strong 8% 7% Strong 25% 25% Weak 35% 35% Very weak 33% 33%

Table 152 Tradition National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1,286) (n=1,665) (n=835) Very strong 8% 10% 4% Strong 25% 32% 16% Weak 38% 33% 35% Very weak 30% 25% 45%

7.3 Circumstantial factors

Instead of a cognitive or a affective bond with newspapers, the relationship could be conative. It means that action comes first. Buying or not buying a newspaper is not a matter of serious deliberation or strong sentiments, but more of a practical matter determined by circumstances. This conative element is the third element of the triad on which our eclectic conceptual model rests. Next to thinkers and feelers there is a rationale of action, a hands-on approach to practical problems. Do I have access to the newspaper in question? Will the paper be delivered on time? Will it be delivered at all? Can I afford it? Could I get its added value with another product such as the Internet or a paper I can obtain for free? Do I have enough time to read a paper? And again it is the subjective perception of the user that determines the relevance and the answer is relevant if it matches the perception. For it is the customer’s perception of reality that determines customer’s behavior. So if according to the customer, the paper is not delivered on time, it is not delivered on time even if in 99% of the cases it is. Custom- ers can be convinced of the fact that they can not afford a newspaper even if they spend twice the amount of money on mobile phones. They can be certain that the content of free papers is the same as the content of paid papers even if a systematic comparison shows the opposite.

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The actors behavior is determined by his or her perception of reality not by that of an observer.

7.3.1 Price Price is important to the reader if money is an issue; if money is scarce the price of a newspaper makes more difference than if there is money in abundance. So we asked the respondents if they totally agree, agree, disagree, totally disagree, or have no opinion about the statement that newspapers are too expensive. We did not exclude the possibility that the price depends on the papers’ added value. So the question was phrased with the addition “in view of what you get.” The same question was asked twice, both in a positive and negative manner: “newspapers are too expensive” and “newspapers are worth every penny you pay for them.” The reliability of the questions was more than sufficient with an Cronbach’s alpha of 0.854. We categorized the answers into four classes, expressing whether a respondent is of the opinion that newspapers are “much too expensive”, “too expensive”, “not expensive”, or “not expensive at all”. The survey showed that a vast majority of newspaper readers in the Netherlands do not consider their newspaper as too expensive. The pattern does not change when age is taken into account. The number of people that considered a newspaper as much too expensive is equally low in three of the five age groups and similarly low in the other two age groups. In all the age groups the categories “not expensive” and “not expensive at all” show similar high percentages: 75, 82, 82, 85, 83 and 84%.

Table 153 Price NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4,155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Much too expensive 3% 4% 2% 2% 3% 2% Too expensive 15% 22% 17% 13% 14% 14% Not expensive 36% 45% 41% 35% 31% 33% Not expensive at all 46% 30% 41% 50% 52% 51%

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Table 154

It is difficult to find a variable that changes this pattern of homogeneity. Gender does not make a difference, neither does the kind of paper one reads, or the title. There is a difference between readers that pay for their newspaper and readers that do not.

Table 155 Price Male (n=2.072) Female (n=2.083) Much too expensive 3% 2% Too expensive 17% 14% Not expensive 36% 37% Not expensive at all 45% 47%

Table 156 Price National dailies (n=1.286) Local dailies (n=1,665) Free papers (n=835) Much too expensive 3% 3% 2% Too expensive 21% 15% 10% Not expensive 35% 36% 38% Not expensive at all 41% 47% 50%

308 Empirical data

Table 157 Price NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=407) (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) (n=200) Much too expensive 5% 5% 2% 7% 4% 1% Too expensive 40% 35% 21% 40% 36% 21% Not expensive 40% 41% 35% 40% 46% 41% Not expensive at all 15% 19% 43% 14% 15% 37%

Table 158 Price NRC de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad (n=206) (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) Much too expensive 2% 2% 1% 4% 2% 5% Too expensive 21% 21% 13% 24% 17% 11% Not expensive 43% 36% 34% 43% 47% 34% Not expensive at all 33% 40% 52% 30% 34% 50%

Table 159 Price NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) (n=333) (n=350) Much too expensive 5% 4% 2% 7% 4% 3% Too expensive 32% 30% 20% 33% 30% 22% Not expensive 41% 39% 34% 41% 45% 34% Not expensive at all 23% 26% 45% 20% 21% 41%

Table 160 Price NRC de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers Handelsblad (n=56) (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) (n=70) Much too expensive 0% 2% 2% 0% 1% 5% Too expensive 23% 14% 9% 27% 13% 10% Not expensive 46% 32% 36% 43% 51% 32% Not expensive at all 31% 52% 54% 30% 35% 53%

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Table 161 Price Spits Metro De Pers (n=284) (n=368) (n=97) Much too expensive 2% 1% 1% Too expensive 11% 9% 8% Not expensive 40% 41% 34% Not expensive at all 47% 49% 57%

7.3.2 Free papers Do free papers influence newspaper loyalty? How do newspaper readers perceive free papers? Are free papers a substitution for paid newspapers or do paid newspapers have clear advantages over free substitutes? We formulated these questions into statements and asked respondents to score these statements. Afterwards we determined the consistency of these statements with Cronbach’s Alpha. Statements with a factor loading of less than .6 were discarded, resulting in an Alpha of .79. The scores of the individual statements were then added up, rendering one score for free papers. This score has been divided into four categories, expressing whether or not a free paper is viewed as a real substitute for paid dailies or not.

Table 162 Free papers Alpha A newspaper you have to pay for is better than a free newspaper The newspaper you have to pay for has more status than a free newspaper 0.787 Reading a free newspaper I always have the feeling that I have missed something

Table 163 Free papers NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4.155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) Very strong 5% 8% 7% 4% 3% 4% Strong 21% 25% 21% 16% 23% 24% Weak 40% 43% 39% 40% 38% 39% Very weak 34% 25% 34% 40% 36% 33% (strong=paid newspapers are better than free papers. weak=paid newspapers are not better than free papers).

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Table 164 Free papers Male (n=2.072) Female (n=2.083) Very strong 7% 3% Strong 24% 19% Weak 41% 38% Very weak 29% 40%

Table 165 Free papers National dailies (n=1,286) Local dailies (n=1,665) Free papers (n=835) Very strong 7% 5% 3% Strong 27% 22% 14% Weak 38% 39% 41% Very weak 28% 34% 43%

Table 166 Free papers NRC de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad (n=200) (n=407) (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) Very strong 13% 12% 4% 19% 12% 8% Strong 47% 48% 26% 42% 44% 30% Weak 35% 29% 44% 29% 32% 40% Very weak 5% 12% 27% 11% 13% 21%

Table 167 Free papers NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) (n=206) Very strong 13% 5% 3% 8% 6% 5% Strong 37% 42% 16% 36% 34% 18% Weak 29% 33% 37% 37% 32% 37% Very weak 20% 20% 44% 19% 27% 41%

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Table 168 Free papers NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers (n=333) (n=350) (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) Very strong 14% 9% 4% 14% 9% 8% Strong 44% 47% 24% 41% 41% 25% Weak 32% 31% 41% 30% 32% 40% Very weak 10% 14% 31% 14% 18% 27%

Table 169 Free papers NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) (n=70) (n=56) Very strong 10% 7% 3% 10% 7% 1% Strong 31% 30% 13% 31% 35% 21% Weak 30% 30% 39% 42% 33% 33% Very weak 29% 32% 45% 17% 25% 44%

Table 170

312 Empirical data

Table 171 Free papers Spits (n=284) Metro (n=368) De Pers (n=97) Very strong 3% 2% 3% Strong 14% 13% 13% Weak 40% 42% 47% Very weak 43% 43% 36% 7.3.3 Delivery A frequent failure in the delivery of a newspaper could have an effect on loyalty. To measure the influence of non-delivery on loyalty we asked subscribers if and how often their newspaper was not delivered in the past six months.

Table 172 Does it happen that your newspaper is not delivered? NRC de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Handelsblad It never occurs 54% 60% 44% 61% 54% 41% It occurs 46% 40% 56% 39% 46% 59%

Table 173 In the last six months, how often was your newspaper not delivered? NRC de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Handelsblad Average number 2.8 3.6 4.1 5.9 2.7 2.8 7.3.4 Time spent reading Time spent reading a newspaper indicates its importance. We assume that the more time readers spend reading their newspaper, the more important they consider it to read a newspaper; and we assume that the more important a newspaper is in the eye of the readers, the stronger their newspaper loyalty. We asked respondents to state the amount of time they spend on reading a newspaper on weekdays and in the weekend. Again this way of measuring does not necessarily produce the actual time readers spend reading a newspaper. We measured the perception of the respondent. Fortunately it is their perception of the time reading a newspaper that has an effect on their behavior, not the actual time spent.

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Table 174 Time spent reading (weekdays) NL (n=4.155) 13-24 (n=657) 25-34 (n=657) 35-49 (n=1.178) 50-64 (n=1.033) > 65 (n=630) I hardly have any time to 10% 12% 13% 14% 5% 4% read a newspaper Less than half an hour 26% 40% 30% 30% 20% 11% Half hour 31% 26% 32% 33% 33% 27% One hour 18% 11% 12% 13% 24% 31% More than one hour 9% 2% 5% 5% 13% 20% Don’t know 7% 9% 8% 5% 5% 7%

The table above shows that people older than 50 read the newspaper much longer than people younger than 50; 4 to 5% of the over 50s agree with the statement “I hardly have any time to read a newspaper”. In the category younger than 50 this percentage is more than twice as much. No more than 25% of the category under 50 read a paper for more than an hour during the week, whereas more than 50% of the over 50s do so.

Table 175 Time spent reading (weekends) NL (n=4.155) 13-24 (n=657) 25-34 (n=657) 35-49 (n=1.178) 50-64 (n=1.033) > 65 (n=630) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper in the 12% 22% 21% 14% 4% 4% weekend Less than half an hour 14% 25% 19% 16% 9% 5% Half hour 18% 21% 21% 21% 14% 12% One hour 29% 16% 22% 30% 38% 34% Two hours 14% 5% 7% 10% 21% 25% More than two hours 6% 2% 2% 4% 9% 14% Don’t know 7% 11% 8% 6% 4% 6%

314 Empirical data

Table 176

People younger than 35 think that during the weekend they have less time to read a newspaper than during the week.

Table 177

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Table 178 Time spent reading (weekdays) Male (n=2.072) Female (n=2.083) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper 8% 11% Less than half an hour 24% 29% Half hour 31% 31% One hour 21% 15% More than one hour 11% 7% Don’t know 6% 7%

Table 179 Time spent reading (weekends) Male (n=2.072) Female (n=2.083) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper in the weekend 11% 13% Less than half an hour 14% 15% Half hour 17% 18% One hour 29% 29% Two hours 16% 13% More than two hours 7% 5% Don’t know 6% 8%

Table 180 Time spent reading (weekdays) National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1.286) (n=1.665) (n=835) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper 9% 10% 8% Less than half an hour 21% 24% 37% Half hour 32% 31% 30% One hour 21% 19% 12% More than one hour 11% 10% 5% Don’t know 6% 6% 8%

There are no significant differences in reading time between men and women. A free paper is read more often less than half an hour than a paid paper. The other categories are more or less equally distributed among the various types of newspapers, although there, the reading time of popular papers is a bit less.

316 Empirical data

Table 181 Time spent reading (weekend) National dailies (n=1.286) Local dailies (n=1.665) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper in the weekend 6% 7% Less than half an hour 11% 14% Half hour 17% 18% One hour 34% 32% Two hours 18% 16% More than two hours 8% 6% Don’t know 6% 6%

Table 182 Time spent reading (weekdays) NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) (n=200) (n=407) I hardly have any time to read a 6% 4% 3% 5% 2% 4% newspaper Less than half an hour 21% 20% 20% 22% 21% 15% Half hour 41% 39% 35% 48% 39% 37% One hour 18% 22% 25% 18% 21% 22% More than one hour 11% 13% 13% 5% 13% 15% Don’t know 3% 4% 3% 2% 4% 6%

Table 183 Time spent reading (weekends) NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) (n=200) (n=407) I hardly have any time to read 3% 3% 1% 13% 4% 3% a newspaper in the weekend Less than half an hour 6% 8% 7% 16% 7% 10% Half hour 13% 9% 19% 22% 15% 13% One hour 31% 33% 43% 28% 34% 32% Two hours 32% 25% 20% 10% 22% 28% More than two hours 11% 19% 8% 7% 13% 9% Don’t know 4% 5% 2% 4% 6% 5%

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Table 184 Time spent reading (weekdays) NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) (n=206) I hardly have any time to read a 17% 12% 17% 12% 9% 11% newspaper Less than half an hour 19% 23% 24% 26% 25% 20% Half hour 31% 29% 25% 37% 34% 29% One hour 14% 18% 18% 15% 16% 22% More than one hour 10% 11% 7% 7% 9% 9% Don’t know 9% 7% 10% 3% 8% 8%

Table 185 Time spent reading (weekends) NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) (n=206) I hardly have any time to read 9% 7% 12% 14% 8% 11% a newspaper in the weekend Less than half an hour 11% 12% 14% 19% 11% 13% Half hour 19% 17% 21% 21% 19% 17% One hour 31% 32% 28% 29% 31% 30% Two hours 12% 17% 11% 9% 16% 12% More than two hours 10% 9% 4% 5% 6% 7% Don’t know 7% 7% 10% 3% 9% 9%

Table 186 Time spent reading (weekdays) NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) (n=333) (n=350) (n=577) I hardly have any time to read a 10% 8% 7% 8% 5% 8% newspaper Less than half an hour 18% 21% 20% 23% 20% 19% Half hour 38% 35% 34% 45% 38% 36% One hour 18% 20% 24% 17% 20% 22% More than one hour 11% 12% 12% 6% 13% 11% Don’t know 4% 5% 3% 1% 4% 5%

318 Empirical data

Table 187 Time spent reading (weekends) NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) (n=333) (n=350) (n=577) I hardly have any time to read a 4% 3% 2% 14% 4% 5% newspaper in the weekend Less than half an hour 7% 9% 8% 14% 7% 9% Half hour 15% 11% 21% 23% 17% 15% One hour 33% 34% 41% 29% 31% 34% Two hours 25% 22% 19% 10% 23% 22% More than two hours 12% 15% 7% 7% 12% 10% Don’t know 4% 5% 3% 3% 6% 4%

Table 188 Time spent reading (weekdays) NRC de De nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) (n=70) (n=56) (n=186) I hardly have any time to read a 17% 9% 16% 8% 7% 14% newspaper Less than half an hour 30% 23% 30% 30% 31% 31% Half hour 27% 27% 19% 34% 33% 27% One hour 7% 20% 15% 16% 13% 16% More than one hour 6% 9% 4% 7% 6% 7% Don’t know 13% 13% 16% 6% 10% 7%

Table 189 Time spent reading (weekends) NRC de De nrc. Trouw AD Non-paying readers Handelsblad Volkskrant Telegraaf next (n=83) (n=108) (n=70) (n=56) (n=186) (n=88) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper in 14% 14% 17% 11% 11% 19% the weekend Less than half an hour 17% 13% 19% 27% 15% 20% Half hour 21% 25% 18% 18% 17% 18% One hour 21% 23% 20% 26% 37% 24% Two hours 10% 13% 8% 10% 7% 7% More than two hours 7% 4% 3% 3% 2% 3% Don’t know 9% 9% 16% 3% 11% 10%

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Table 190 Time spent reading (on weekdays) Spits Metro De Pers (n=284) (n=368) (n=97) I hardly have any time to read a newspaper 9% 10% 5% Less than half an hour 35% 38% 33% Half hour 35% 28% 27% One hour 6% 13% 20% More than one hour 5% 4% 11% Don’t know 10% 7% 4%

7.3.5 Overwhelming news supply In the previous question, we tried to find out how much time the respondents spend reading a newspaper, because we assume a positive relationship between reading time and newspaper loyalty. With this question we wanted to find out if respondents think it is a hopeless task to follow all the news, the supply increased and there is less free time. We constructed a scale and asked respondents to score it. We determined the consistency of the scale with Cronbach’s Alpha. Statements with a factor loading of less than 0.6 were discarded, resulting in an Alpha of 0.86. The scores of the individual statements were then added up, rendering one score for ‘Overwhelming news supply’. The score was divided into four categories, expressing whether or not readers experience the lack time to read a newspaper is very strong, strong, weak, or very weak.

Table 191 Overwhelming news supply Alpha There are so many media I want to keep up with that I have no time of time for reading a newspaper The idea of reading a newspaper makes me uneasy I often feel that I lack the time to read a newspaper properly It happens quite often that don’t even touch a newspaper 0.860 I’ll always find a spare moment to read a newspaper If I am honest there is really no time to read a newspaper I only read a newspaper if I have a moment to spare

320 Empirical data

The table below shows that two-thirds of younger readers experience the lack of time as strong or very strong. This percentage is about 25 among older readers (50+). A weak experience of lack of time is highest among 35% of the younger readers and more than 75% of the older readers.

Table 192 Overwhelming news supply NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4.155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1.178) (n=1.033) (n=630) Very strong 8% 10% 14% 10% 5% 4% Strong 37% 53% 50% 42% 24% 18% Weak 35% 32% 29% 36% 39% 38% Very weak 20% 5% 8% 13% 32% 40% (strong = strong sense of being unable to read a newspaper due to Overwhelming news supply, weak = weak sense of being unable to read a newspaper due to Overwhelming news supply

Table 193

Table 194 Overwhelming news supply Male (n=2,072) Female (n=2,083) Very strong 7% 9% Strong 36% 38% Weak 37% 34% Very weak 20% 19%

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Table 195 Overwhelming news supply National dailies Local dailies Free papers (n=1,286) (n=1,665) (n=835) Very strong 6% 7% 9% Strong 34% 31% 49% Weak 37% 37% 34% Very weak 24% 25% 8%

Table 196 Overwhelming news supply NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=407) (n=197) (n=165) (n=211) (n=202) (n=200) Very strong 7% 5% 2% 6% 2% 3% Strong 29% 26% 19% 37% 30% 21% Weak 43% 44% 40% 44% 47% 49% Very weak 22% 26% 39% 13% 21% 28%

Table 197 Overwhelming news supply NRC de De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers Handelsblad Volkskrant (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) (n=201) (n=206) Very strong 9% 8% 10% 11% 9% 9% Strong 49% 49% 49% 46% 44% 49% Weak 37% 29% 32% 34% 37% 27% Very weak 5% 15% 9% 9% 10% 15%

Table 198 Overwhelming news supply de NRC Handelsblad De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers Volkskrant (n=333) (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) (n=350) Very strong 8% 5% 4% 8% 4% 4% Strong 35% 37% 27% 39% 35% 27% Weak 42% 37% 39% 40% 43% 44% Very weak 15% 21% 31% 12% 18% 25%

322 Empirical data

Table 199 Overwhelming news supply de NRC Handelsblad De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers Volkskrant (n=70) (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) (n=56) Very strong 10% 16% 12% 10% 12% 11% Strong 56% 41% 52% 49% 45% 57% Weak 30% 29% 28% 35% 36% 27% Very weak 4% 14% 8% 6% 7% 6%

Table 200 Overwhelming news supply Spits (n=284) Metro (n=368) De Pers (n=97) Very strong 10% 9% 8% Strong 54% 49% 40% Weak 30% 35% 40% Very weak 7% 8% 11% 7.3.6 Preferences of medium The preference for other media, especially the Internet, could have an effect on newspaper loyalty. We measured preferences of medium from three angles: (a) media as a whole. The preference for one medium over another is not the result of rational decision making, but of a vague affective process; there are no reasons for taking a certain position, there is just the feeling that it is right.

Table 201 1. National paper (paid) 10% 2. Local paper (paid) 8% 3. Free paper 13% If there were only one way to get the news, which 4. Television 27% would you choose? 5. Radio 3% 6. Internet 34% 7. Teletext (Ceefax) 4% 8. Magazine 1%

“I prefer to read the news in a newspaper than on a screen.” “I would rather read the news online than wait for a newspaper.” “Of all the media, I prefer a newspaper because it offers more depth.” We measured this global preference by asking “If there were only one way to get the news, which would you choose: a national newspaper, a

323 Chapter 7 local newspaper, a free newspaper, television, radio, Internet, Teletext (Ceefax) or a magazine? (b) Internet as a substitute for newspapers. We wanted to know if the respondents consider the Internet as a serious substitute for a newspaper. We used a scale that was made up of four statements.

Table 202 Internet as a substitute for newspapers Alpha I read the news less often in a newspaper and more and more on the Internet It is much easier to follow the news on the Internet than in the newspaper 0.863 Reading a newspaper on the Internet is as good as reading a printed newspaper The new Internet news site offers me more than a printed newspaper

We determined the consistency of these statements with Cronbach’s Al- pha. The outcome of 0.863 indicates fairly high consistency. The scores were divided into four categories: a very strong, strong, weak or very weak conviction that the Internet is a viable substitute for newspapers. It is remarkable that the youngest (9%) and the oldest age groups (6%) are more similar in their opinions of the Internet as a newspaper substitute than the oldest (again 6%) and the next to youngest group (17%).

Table 203 Internet as a newspaper substitute NL 13-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 > 65 (n=4,155) (n=657) (n=657) (n=1,178) (n=1,033) (n=630) Very strong 11% 9% 17% 14% 7% 6% Strong 30% 33% 36% 31% 29% 23% Weak 39% 47% 37% 39% 37% 39% Very weak 20% 11% 11% 16% 27% 32% (strong = Internet is a substitute for newspapers, weak = Internet is not a substitute for newspapers)

324 Empirical data

Table 204

Gender is not a discriminating variable as is shown in the table below; 43% of males in the Netherlands and 40% of females have a strong or very strong opinion that the Internet is a newspaper substitute.

Table 205 Internet as a newspaper substitute Male (n=2.072) Female (n=2.083) Very strong 12% 10% Strong 31% 30% Weak 41% 38% Very weak 17% 22%

The table below shows that 37% of the readers of both national and local newspapers have strong or very strong opinion that the Internet is a newspaper substitute.

Table 206 Internet as a newspaper substitute National dailies (n=1,286) Local dailies (n=1,665) Free papers (n=835) Very strong 9% 9% 12% Strong 28% 28% 37% Weak 38% 41% 40% Very weak 25% 22% 11%

Among the readers of the various national newspapers, the readers of nrc.next seem to be more positive about the Internet than the readers of Trouw.

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Table 207 Internet as a newspaper substitute Subscribers NRC Handelsblad (n=202) de Volkskrant (n=200) De Telegraaf (n=407) nrc.next (n=197) Trouw (n=165) AD (n=211) Very strong 3% 3% 6% 5% 1% 4% Strong 18% 19% 18% 26% 13% 15% Weak 45% 43% 40% 41% 50% 41% Very weak 34% 35% 36% 28% 36% 40%

More non-subscribers and people who read a national newspaper without paying for it (e.g. they borrow the paper from a friend or a relative) are strongly or very strongly convinced that the Internet is a substitute for newspapers.

Table 208 Internet as a newspaper substitute NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-subscribers (n=201) (n=206) (n=356) (n=196) (n=174) (n=217) Very strong 8% 8% 14% 9% 8% 17% Strong 28% 36% 41% 34% 40% 35% Weak 48% 38% 38% 41% 36% 32% Very weak 16% 17% 7% 16% 17% 16%

Table 209 Internet as a newspaper substitute Spits (n=284) Metro (n=368) De Pers (n=97) Very strong 14% 11% 13% Strong 35% 39% 32% Weak 41% 38% 44% Very weak 11% 13% 10%

326 Empirical data

Table 210

Table 211 Internet as a newspaper substitute NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Paying readers (n=333) (n=350) (n=577) (n=305) (n=256) (n=320) Very strong 4% 5% 8% 7% 4% 6% Strong 23% 25% 26% 28% 20% 24% Weak 46% 42% 39% 43% 48% 42% Very weak 28% 28% 27% 23% 29% 28%

Table 212 Internet as a newspaper substitute NRC Handelsblad de Volkskrant De Telegraaf nrc.next Trouw AD Non-paying readers (n=70) (n=56) (n=186) (n=88) (n=83) (n=108) Very strong 11% 11% 16% 9% 6% 17% Strong 23% 46% 37% 36% 48% 41% Weak 51% 30% 41% 35% 29% 34% Very weak 14% 13% 7% 19% 17% 8%

(c) The preference for a medium is linked to a topic, function, or perspective. Until now we assumed that the media preferences are linked to the characteristics of the media itself. “I prefer reading a newspaper be-

327 Chapter 7 cause it gives me much more insight.” “I want to see sports on television because I want to watch a game rather than read about it.” It is conceivable, however, that the preference for a medium varies according to the subject, the function or the perspective. In the last section of this chapter we describe those contingent media preferences. We started by finding out to what extent medium preference is linked to a certain topic or subject.

Table 213 by which medium do you prefer to be informed about the following topics/ subjects? Radio Television Newspaper Internet Teletext Magazine No preference Politics 5% 44% 19% 13% 3% 1% 15% Crime 3% 37% 31% 17% 4% 1% 7% Disasters, accidents and 6% 54% 15% 17% 4% 1% 5% calamities Mobility 12% 27% 20% 24% 8% 2% 8% 3% 18% 30% 23% 4% 3% 19% Economy

Sports 2% 38% 16% 14% 4% 2% 25% Science 1% 20% 24% 21% 2% 14% 18% Reflection (psychology, 2% 14% 19% 14% 2% 13% 35% religion, philosophy) Education 2% 24% 31% 19% 3% 6% 16% Society 3% 32% 32% 16% 2% 5% 10% Health & 1% 23% 21% 24% 2% 18% 11% fitness Living 1% 19% 22% 22% 2% 20% 14% Travel 1% 19% 18% 33% 2% 14% 13% Art & culture 2% 19% 22% 20% 2% 13% 24% Media 2% 24% 26% 28% 3% 7% 11% Leisure 2% 20% 23% 34% 2% 12% 9% Celebrities 2% 26% 13% 17% 2% 13% 26% New products 1% 17% 17% 34% 2% 13% 16% Games & 1% 21% 20% 34% 2% 9% 13% relaxation

328 Empirical data

Table 214 Which media do you prefer for this type of information? Radio Television Teletext Magazine Newspaper Internet No preference Bare facts 9% 24% 9% 2% 26% 20% 12% Overview 2% 30% 4% 3% 36% 20% 6% Elucidation 2% 32% 3% 5% 32% 19% 6% Opinion 3% 20% 2% 6% 28% 13% 29% Advice 2% 21% 2% 12% 27% 29% 7% Emotion 2% 40% 2% 7% 26% 16% 7% Entertainment 3% 44% 2% 6% 17% 20% 8%

Table 215 Which media do you prefer for this type of information? Radio Television Teletext Magazine Newspaper Internet No preference 1. Human perspective 4% 44% 1% 6% 25% 15% 5% 2. Social perspective 2% 36% 2% 4% 33% 16% 6% Institutional 3. perspective 3% 29% 3% 5% 31% 16% 14%

Table 216 Which media do you prefer for this type of information? Radio Television Teletext Magazine Newspaper Internet No preference 1. Practical perspective 3% 24% 2% 6% 26% 33% 7% 2. General perspective 3% 27% 3% 7% 27% 24% 10%

329

Chapter 8 Testing the hypotheses Chapter 8

8.0 Introduction

Despite the fact that they do not get the kind of articles they want most subscribers stay loyal nevertheless. Why are they doing this? Why do some subscribers stay loyal and some don’t? What causes newspaper loyalty? A logistic regression analysis was made estimating the effect of the cognitive (primary and secondary functions), affective (brand, habit & tradition) and conative (price, free papers, delivery, overwhelming news supply, time spent and medium preference) variables on newspaper loyalty. The analysis was restricted to subscribers of newspapers (n = 1.606) in a sample of the Dutch population (n = 4.155) that was representative for age, gender, newspaper purchase and education. We choose for a logistic regression analysis and not for a discrimi- nant analysis, because we do not want to compute a function that best discriminates between loyal and disloyal subscribers, but we want to know the odds that a subscriber stays loyal, or not. We choose for a logistic regression analysis and not for a linear, because the dependent variable is nominal. A linear regression is not possible with a nominal dependent variable, a logistic regression is. Since the dependent variable is binary (loyal and disloyal) we choose for a binary logistic regression. In order to compare variables of different magnitudes and dispersions the variables in the model are standardized. This means that for each datum the mean is subtracted and the result is divided by the standard deviation. Standardization makes it possible to compare the predictive power of each variable, because all the means are 0 and all the standard deviations are 1. The results are presented in four sections. A section about a. the kind of model that predicts best: a cognitive, affective, or conative model b. the contribution to the comprehensive model c. respondent’s characteristics d. newspaper characteristics

332 Testing the hypotheses

tes ting the hypothes es

hypothes es

cognitive affective conative variables variables variables

ps ychological primary s econdary time s pent functions functions reading a free papers habit news paper

brand cultural s ocial media s econdary price s econdary functions tradition preference functions

overwhelming delivery news s upply lay-out and the as piration fuzzy perception of & s upply internet as s upply behavior alternative

8.1 Best kind of model

In order to determine the power and contribution of a model that is dominated by variables that are the operationalization of a cognitive, affective, or conative way of coming to a conclusion we first look at the improvement in this classification table hit rate in this case. The hit rate is the percentage of correctly predicted loyal and disloyal subscribers. To determine if a model’s hit rate is an improvement over a chance hit rate (a chance prediction of the classification of subscribers’ loyalty), we need to establish the chance hit rate first and then determine whether the model’s hit rate is above or below the threshold that is commonly used to judge whether the model is a real improvement over chance. The rule of thumb sets the threshold at a 25% improvement of the model’s hit rate over the chance hit rate.

333 Chapter 8

The chance hit rate for predicting (dis)loyalty is 59,7%. The 25% improvement threshold lies at 74,6%.* The cognitive model is also referred to as the rational, or as the analytical model, or as system II. The affective model is also referred to as the emotional model, the experiential model, the holistic model, or as system I. In this study conation is defined as practical action. It refers to the people that act before they think and that are above all inspired by the circumstances: is it delivered, can I afford it, do I have the time to use it, do I have more acceptable alternatives like free papers or the Internet.

8.1.1 Cognitive variables The hypotheses that cognitive variables explain newspaper loyalty is refuted. People do not cancel, or renew their newspaper subscription after a process of logical reasoning. The reported hit rate after set 1 is entered - the variables that are the operationalization of a rational way of thinking -, is 72,4%, which is below the threshold of 74,6. Moreover, if we observe the classification table carefully, we can see that cognitive variables predict the loyal group very well (99,46% correct classifica- tions) but predicts only 3,46% of the disloyal subscribers correctly. A model with only cognitive variables is therefore not an accurate predictor of disloyalty. The survey results show a match between preferences and perceived supply of all newspapers in less than 25% of the cases. Or to put the same result differently: the survey results show a mismatch between preferences and perceived supply in more than 75% of the cases. If three quarters of the newspaper subscribers do not get the kind of paper they want one would expect a massive exodus of subscribers. But this is not the case. Some subscribers stay subscribed and some do not. This outcome suggests that the primary function of a newspaper does not influence the decision to cancel or to renew a newspaper subscription. Logistic regression analysis confirmed this suggestion. The chance hit rate is (0,72 x 0,72) + (0,28 x 0,28) = 0,5968. The model must be 25% better than chance; 1,25 x 0,5968 = 74,6% .

* Chance rate is derived from the squared sum of the observed relative propor- tions of loyal and disloyal subscribers. The observed relative distribution is 72% loyal and 28% disloyal subscribers. The sum of the squared percentages is 59,7%.

334 Testing the hypotheses

The model’s hit rate (only cognitive variables) is 72,41%; correctly predicted 1113; all cases: 1537. This is less than the chance hit rate + 25% = 74,6

Table 217 Hit rate after Set 1 (cognitive variables)

correctly predicted incorrectly predicted total loyal 1098 99,46% 6 1,41% 1104 71,82% disloyal 15 3,46% 418 98,58% 433 28,58% total 1113 72,41% 424 27,58% 1537

8.1.2 Affective variables After set 2 - the variables that are the operationalization of an affective way of decision making - was entered into the model, the overall hit rate did not improve, even decreased 0,43 percent points (72,41%, to 71,98%).* The percentage of correctly predicted disloyal subscribers increased from 3,46% to 11,31%, an almost fourfold improvement.

Table 218 Hit rate after Set 2 (affective variables) Classification table Observed Predicted loyal disloyal percentage correct loyal 1056 46 95,8 disloyal 384 49 11,3 overall 72,0

correctly predicted incorrectly predicted total loyal 1056 95,56% 46 4,17% 1102 71,79% disloyal 49 11,31% 384 88,68% 433 28,20% total 1105 71,98% 430 28,01% 1535

* To avoid misunderstanding: the affective variables were added to the model, did not replace the cognitive variables in the model.

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8.1.3 Conative variables Finally, we noticed an improvement in hit rate when the third set is added. The overall hit rate improved to 75,5%, which is slightly above the original 25% improvement threshold of 74,6%. The comprehensive model can therefore be considered an improvement over a chance prediction of disloyalty and can be declared a relevant model. Moreover, the percentage of correctly classified disloyal subscribers has increased to 27,7%, a more than twofold increase over a model with only the cognitive and affective variables.

Table 219 Hit rate after Set 3 (conative variables)

correctly predicted incorrectly predicted Total Loyal 1039 89,64% 313 23,15% 1352 88,07% disloyal 120 10,35% 63 34,42% 183 11,92% 1159 75,50% 376 24,49% 1535

8.1.4 Probability of disloyalty The logistic regression model is expressed in an equation which outcome yields the odds (and probability) of occurred disloyalty. The equation is as follows:

Where z is the logit (to calculate the odds of the event of interest), b0 is the b value (logistic coefficient) of the constant plus the products of the independent variables (X1 to Xk) times their b values. The X values can be any value along the scales of the respective variables. In our case, the independent variables are standardized to better compare there odds ratios so that all variables have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1.

336 Testing the hypotheses

Table 220 Probabilities of disloyalty Odds(event) P(event) 1 st dev more positive 21,9% 18,0% Mean 33,7% 25,2% 1 st dev more negative 51,8% 34,1%

With all the variables valued at one unit standard deviation to the loyalty affirming (more positive) end of the value distribution, the probability of disloyalty is 18%. At the other, the more negative end, the probability is almost twice as high, 34%. With all values at their means, the probability is 25%. There is no measure or rule of thumb regarding to what a relevant increase in probability is, but an almost doubling of the probability of disloyalty between 2 standard deviations seems a significant contribution to predicting the probability that disloyalty occurs. If there was very little, or no effect of the model on disloyalty the b values would be close to zero, rendering changes in values of X1 to Xk almost irrelevant. Hypothesis 5 is refuted, the hypotheses 9 and 16 are confirmed. Hypothesis 5 Cognitive variables contribute significantly to the explanation of newspaper loyalty .

Hypothesis 9 Affective variables contribute significantly to the explanation of newspaper loyalty .

Hypothesis 16 Conative variables contribute significantly to the explanation of newspaper loyalty.

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8.2 All variables of the comprehensive model

Based on the B value of every independent variable an odds ratio is calculated, indicating the impact an individual variable has on the odds of disloyalty.

Table 221 Odds ratios for individual variables % change B Sig Exp(b) in odds (event) Primary functions 1. 0,140 0,030 1,151 15,1% Psychological secondary functions 2. 0,282 0,001 1,326 32,6% Cognitive variables Social secondary functions 3. -0,022 0,788 0,979 -2,1% Cultural secondary functions 4. 0,041 0,605 1,042 4,2% Brand 5. -0,565 0,000 0,568 -43,2% Affective variables Tradition 6. -0,083 0,238 0,920 -8,0% Habit 7. -0,137 0,164 0,872 -12,8% Internet as an alternative 8. 0,213 0,004 1,238 23,8% Specific medium preference 9. -0,034 0,644 0,966 -3,4% Free papers 10. -0,023 0,755 0,978 -2,2% Conative variables Time spent reading 11. 0,040 0,581 1,041 4,1% Overwhelming media supply 12. -0,131 0,151 0,877 -12,3% Price 13. -0,454 0,000 0,635 -36,5% Delivery 14. 0,407 0,000 1,502 50,2%

A positive odds ratio indicates an increase in the odds of disloyalty; a negative value indicates a decrease in the odds of disloyalty. Logistic regression calculates the odds ratios for each variable, control- ling for the other variables. The effect sizes of the independent variables must therefore be considered in relation to each other. Although all variables in the model have an odds ratio, six of them were significant: Primary functions, Psychological secondary functions, Brand, Price, Delivery and Internet as an alternative. Delivery and Brand are the variables with the strongest impact on disloyalty. A one unit increase in non delivery increases the odds of disloyalty with 50,2%, while a one unit increase in brand value decreases the odds of disloyalty by 43,2%.* Price is the third most influential

* Remember that the variables are standardized, a one unit increase is therefore a comparable value across variables. The direction of the relation is of course linked to the way the variable is measured in the questionnaire.

338 Testing the hypotheses variable. A one unit increase in a subscriber’s opinion of the newspaper in question being worth it’s price, decreases the odds of disloyalty of that subscriber by 36,5%. The fourth variable is the psychological secondary function. A one unit increase in psychological secondary functions increases the odds of disloyalty by 32%. Internet as an alternative is on place five. (23,8%) And finally a one unit increase of primary functions increases the odds of disloyalty with 15,1%. The hypotheses 13, 6 and 10 are confirmed.

Hypothesis 13. The delivery of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 6. The brand of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 10. The price of a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

8.2.1 Function Rational reasoning assumes that primary functions have an impact on newspaper loyalty. If a newspaper does not publish the kind of articles a subscriber prefers, not the preferred mix of areas of interest, or not the preferred mix of perspectives, or not the preferred mix of specific functions this subscriber will end his subscription. If he does not, e.g. if he perceives a dominance of articles, and pictures about sports, a dominance of articles written from a human perspective and with a factual specific function and he prefers a dominance of politics, a social perspective and an eluminative specific function, but nevertheless he does not even think of ending his subscription, in that case primary functions have no substantial impact on newspaper loyalty. The survey shows that primary functions have a moderate impact on newspaper loyalty. Primary functions increase the odds on newspaper loyalty with 15,1%, almost four times less than delivery and brand (50,2% and 43,2%). Some secondary functions increase the odds on newspaper loyalty twice as much than the primary functions, (psychological secondary functions increases the odds with 32,6%) other secondary functions almost have no impact, they decrease the odds on newspaper loyalty with 4,2% and 2,1%.

339 Chapter 8

The hypotheses 1 and 2 are confirmed. Hypothesis 1 Primary functions have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 2 Secondary functions have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty. 8.2.2 Brand Brand is an affective connection between a customer and a product. As we showed before, brand is not about the functional benefits, but about an emotional bond. It is not a business deal but a love affair. The Gallup Organization developed a scale that measures brand. We used this scale and adapted it for newspapers. The reliability of the scale was tested with Cronbach’s alpha. The ten statements had an a of 0,87 which means that the answers that were given by the 4.155 respondents were consistent; the 10 statements measured one variable. The interviewees were asked to give their opinion about ten statements on a five point scale: strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree and no opinion. Strongly agree gets +2, agree +1 disagree -1, strongly disagree -2 and no opinion 0. Maximum brand score is +20, minimum brand score is – 20. A score between -20 and -10 is called strongly negative, -10 - 0 negative, 0 - +10 weakly positive and +10 - +20 strongly positive. The regression of brand on newspaper loyalty is much more substantial than the rational variables. A positive strong newspaper brand causes an increase in newspaper loyalty, a negative strong newspaper brands causes a decrease in newspaper loyalty.

8.2.3 Habit & tradition Habit and tradition have no significant effect on disloyalty. Habit almost did, but the figures are irrevocable. The hypotheses 7 and 8 are refuted.

Hypothesis 7 The habit of buying a newspaper has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 8 Tradition has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

340 Testing the hypotheses

8.2.4 Free papers, medium preference, time spent reading, overwhelming media supply In this study conation is defined as practical action. It refers to the people that act before they think and that are above all inspired by the circumstances: can I afford it, do I have the time to use it, do I have more acceptable alternatives like free papers or the Internet. The hypotheses 11,12, 14 and 15 are refuted.

Hypothesis 11 Free papers have a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 12 Medium preference has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Medium preference consists of two variables: one measuring the general medium preference (Internet as an alternative to newspapers) and the other measuring the specific content-related media preference (medium preference per areas of interest, functions and perspectives. The regression estimates the impact of both on newspaper loyalty. We find that the general media preference has the highest impact on newspaper loyalty. The odds increase 23,8%. The specific media preference has a much lesser impact: -3,4%.

Hypothesis 14 Time spent reading has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty.

Hypothesis 15 Overwhelming media supply has a significant impact on newspaper loyalty. 8.2.5 Quality papers and popular papers It is reasonable to assume that people who subscribe on a paper that distinguished itself from its competitors because of the quality of its content did so because of its content and that for this group of readers content will explain newspaper loyalty more than in the case of subscribers of poplar papers. However, this is not the case. On the contrary. We repeated the analysis for a different population and separated the subscribers of a quality paper from the subscribers of popular papers. The two samples will be referred to as the quality sample and the popular sample.

341 Chapter 8

NRC Handelsblad, nrc.next, de Volkskrant and Trouw are considered quality papers, De Telegraaf and het Algemeen Dagblad are considered popular papers. The following paragraphs discuss and compare the results for both groups (based on a representative sample of subscribers to popular and quality newspapers, with 589 and 725 respondents respectively). The sets of significant independent variables differ between the two groups and so do the effect sizes. Please note that for the delivery variable it was necessary to create a categorical variable, which is treated differently in logistic regression. Instead of estimating one odds ratio for each independent scale variable, the regression model estimates separate odds ratios for each category of a categorical variable and tests whether each ratio is statistically significant. The categories of delivery are: 1 = 0 non-deliveries in past six month 2 = 1-5 “ 3 = 6-10 “ 4 = 11-15 “ 5 = 16 < “ In the odds ratio table, the first category is not reported because it is the reference category. The odds of the other categories are to be understood in terms of: in contrast to the reference category (the newspaper was always delivered in the past 6 months), the odds of disloyalty change with a certain percentage when a subscriber is in category 2 (1-5 non-deliveries).

Table 222 Odds ratios Quality subscribers Variable B Sig. Exp(B) % change in odds(event)1 Brand -0,729 0,000 0,482 -51,8% Price -0,347 0,001 0,707 -29,3% Psychological secondary functions 0,290 0,011 1,337 33,7% Tradition -0,226 0,026 0,798 -20,2% Delivery cat 2 -3,085 0,009 0,046 -95,4% Delivery cat 3 -3,054 0,010 0,047 -95,3% Delivery cat 4 -2,079 0,098 Not significant Delivery cat 5 -2,198 0,144 Not significant 1 Is the percentage of change in the odds of disloyalty occurring.

Amongst quality subscribers, delivery is by far the strongest predictor of disloyalty, with both categories 2 and 3 (up to 10 non-deliveries) cause

342 Testing the hypotheses a 95% change in the odds of disloyalty. However, higher categories of delivery have no significant effect. Brand has the second largest effect on the odds of disloyalty, followed by psychological secondary functions, price and tradition. The other variables do not affect the odds of disloyalty significantly.

Table 223 Odds ratios Popular subscribers Variable B Sig. Exp(B) % change in odds(event)1 Brand -0,502 0,000 0,605 -39,5% Price -0,612 0,000 0,542 -45,8% Primary functions 0,235 0,032 1,265 26,5% Internet as an alternative 0,251 0,030 1,285 28,5% Overwhelming media supply -0,288 0,013 0,749 -25,1% Delivery cat 2 -0,820 0,313 Not significant Delivery cat 3 -0,760 0,349 Not significant Delivery cat 4 0,400 0,661 Not significant Delivery cat 5 0,430 0,704 Not significant 1 Is the percentage of change in the odds of disloyalty occurring.

The variables that cause a change in the odds of disloyalty of popular paper subscribers differ strongly as is shown in the table below. The columns P and Q (Popular papers and Quality papers) indicate the rank of the variable. We see that only brand takes the same place (2nd) in both categories. It is remarkable that primary functions takes place four in the category of popular subscribers, but is not significant in the quality model and that secondary functions take place three in the category of popular subscribers, but is not significant in the quality model.

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Variable P Q Brand 2 2 Price 1 4 Primary functions 4 - Internet as an alternative 3 - Overwhelming media supply 5 - Psychological secondary functions 3 Delivery cat 2 (1) Delivery cat 3 (ns) Delivery cat 4 (ns) Tradition 5

Concluding, it seems that disloyalty among quality subscribers is more influenced by affective factors, while disloyalty among popular subscribers is more strongly affected by conative factors. However, delivery forms a major exception, as non-delivery is an important and influential factor in disloyalty among quality subscribers, while it is non-significant among popular subscribers. In table 3, the hit rates and the threshold test over chance rates is reported for the two groups. For the quality group the reported hit rate is 60,05%. The 25% improvement threshold lies at 75,06% and the reported hit rate is 74,9%, which means the model is just on the line (if we round off to whole numbers). For the popular group the chance hit rate is 60,05%, the 25% improvement threshold is 69,63% and the reported hit rate is 73,3%, which means that the model fits much better for the sample of popular subscribers. It seems that the odds of disloyalty are better predictable for the popular group than for the quality group.

Table 224 Hit rates per group Classification table hit rate N % Squared % Chance 25% impr Model rate threshold hit rate Quality Loyal 525 72,41% 0,5244 60,05% 75,06% 74,90% Subscribers Disloyal 200 27,59% 0,0761

Popular Loyal 394 66,89% 0,4475 55,71% 69,63% 73,30% Subscribers Disloyal 195 33,11% 0,1096

344 Testing the hypotheses

8.3 Characteristics of people

The question to define audience seems to be as old as media science itself. The discussion is dominated by the dissension whether an audience is active or passive.250 An audience can be defined in terms of the media that are used, or the personal characteristics they show. Defining audience in functional terms appears to be more practical than for instance a definition based on personal characteristics, such as age or gender. Defining audience as a target group says something about the group characteristics, not about the contribution to that group. We define audience as a category of people with a similar mix of preferred newspaper-functions. This is a more specific approach than defining audience as a category of people that use the same medium, such as a radio audience, or a newspaper audience. As to the active/passive debate we assume an audience is heterogeneous on this point. We distinguish four groups: 1) People that belong to an active audience know what they want (from a newspaper) and are able to put their preferences into words. 2) People that know what they want, but lack a precise vocabulary have a fuzzy preference. 3) It is also possible that people who do not know what they want, do know what they want if they see what they can get. We consider them reactive. 4) Finally there are people without any preference. We consider them passive. The four statements below separate the active audience members from the passive ones and show the nuances in between. The survey will show if the audience is homogeneous, or heterogeneous. The survey will also show to what extend this is the case: the magnitude of the group, or groups. The survey (Dutch population n = 4.155) shows that 23% are active; 77% are not. As the table below shows the opposite is the case. The figures are even flattered. In the real world this percentage will be less than 23% for it is fair to assume that it is more likely that people say truthfully that they do not know what they prefer, or they are not able to put their preferences into words, whether in fact they can, than they say truthfully that they can put their preferences into words if they can not. So the chance that the number of people that put themselves unjustly

345 Chapter 8 in place 2,3 and 4 is smaller than the chance that they put themselves unjustly in place 1.

Table 225 Fuzzy preferences Fuzzy preferences 1. I know what I want to read in the newspaper and I’m able to put 23% 23% 75% these preference into words 2. I know what I want to read in the newspaper but I find it difficult to 11% 77% put these preferences into words 3. Only if I have a newspaper in front of me I know what I want to 41% read 4. I have no particular preferences about what I want to read the 25% 25% newspaper N = 4.155

A respondent who says that he wants to read good articles could be totally convinced that this preference fits statement 1. The figures in the table above disconfirm hypothesis 3.

Hypothesis 3. The number of people that can articulate their newspaper preferences exceeds the number of people that can not. At first sight the consequence of this result is that it is difficult if not impossible to conduct a survey about preferences, because according to this very survey most of the interviewees are not capable to put those preferences into words. Fortunately 41% say they know what they want if they have a newspaper in front of them and this is what is done during the interviews.

8.3.1 Aspiration and behavior The survey shows that the number of people who act according to their aspiration is by far smaller than the people who don’t. The interviewees were asked if they recognize the following situation. “It can happen that you want to do something that you think is really important but as the moment arrives to do so you don’t. This can happen reading a paper. You don’t always read first what you should read first. Do you recognize this.” The possible answers are: 1. I know that feeling for sure 2. I know that feeling 3. I do not know that feeling.

346 Testing the hypotheses

The question was asked to a sample of the Dutch population (n = 4144) and was answered as follows.

Table 226 Aspiration and behavior Aspiration and behavior 1. I know that feeling for sure 23% 67% 2. I know that feeling 45% 3. I do not know that feeling. 33% 33%

Two thirds of the respondents admit they do something they did not intent to do. It is not likely that someone says “I know that feeling for sure”, or “I know that feeling” if the respondent do not. It is more likely that a respondent untruthfully says that he always read the articles that he should read first than that he admits that he does not act according to his intentions. Therefore the chance that in the Real World the percentage of the people that know the feeling will be higher than the percentage of people that do not. The results can be categorized in three groups: 1. no difference 2. aspiration higher 3. behavior higher. A respondent who says that he or she knows the feeling was asked what kind of articles he, or she should read first and what article he, or she reads first in practice. We asked the respondents to allocate a hundred points twice: what should be read first and what is read. This is asked in reference to areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives. As areas of interest are concerned politics, economy, science, reflection and education score higher on the list of aspiration than on the list of behavior. Those areas of interest should be read sooner than is done in practice. The same can be said about the specific function of elucidation. Stories with that function are on top of the list, but in practice the function of elucidation is on place 5. Sports, media, leisure, celebrities, new products and game & relaxation are areas of interest higher on the behavior-list. Those areas of interest are read sooner than should be done. Emotion is on top of the list of specific functions as behavior is concerned. On the list of aspiration emotion is on place 5. The figures above disconfirm hypothesis 4.

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Hypothesis 4. The number of people who act according to their aspirations exceeds the number of people who do not.

8.3.2 Layout and the perception of supply Layout has a great impact on the perception of newspaper supply.

Image 6 A B C

The interviewees were shown three different pages and were asked to pick three areas of interest that were dominant in that kind of paper and three areas of interest that were the least important. The same question was asked for specific functions and perspectives. As was expected the lists belonging to the three different layouts differ. The survey results confirm hypothesis 17.

Hypothesis 17 The layout of a newspaper has a significant impact on the perception of newspaper supply.

348 Testing the hypotheses

Table 226 Expectation & layout Expectation & layout A B C A B C A B C Politics Human 59% 29% 18% The bare facts 34% 24% 26% 16% 30% 60% perspective Crime Social 19% 26% 20% Overview 59% 44% 28% 44% 58% 31% perspective Calamities Institutional 22% 35% 29% Elucidation 45% 37% 23% 40% 12% 10% perspective Economy & personal 35% 17% 12% Opinion 19% 29% 26% finances Sports 11% 13% 16% Advice 17% 29% 29% Science 12% 8% 6% Emotion 20% 27% 33% Health & fitness 7% 9% 11% Entertainment 6% 11% 34% Travel 3% 6% 8% Art & culture 13% 21% 16% Celebrities 3% 10% 33% Game & 4% 5% 12% entertainment

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8.3.3 Political mismatch There is of course the argument that the choice of having a paper is very simple: right-wing people read right-wing papers and left-wing people read left wing papers. We asked the respondents to characterize themselves on a five point scale: left, centre-left, centre, centre-right and right. At the end of the interview we asked the respondents to characterize the paper they read the most with the same criteria. We assumed that a mismatch is a cause for disloyalty. The independent variable political mismatch is defined in terms of five steps: 0=no mismatch, 1=mismatch of one step (the difference between center preference and center-left or center-right political and center), 2=mismatch of two steps, etc until 5=mismatch of 5 steps (far left vs far right). Below are the tables containing the classification results and the odds ratios for the various categories of political mismatch. The odds ratios for political mismatch are not significant from categories 2 and up. The first category of political mismatch is significant and increases the odds of disloyalty by 69,5% (1-Exp(b) of the first category). However, the model fit is not impressive as political mismatch only predicts 3,6% of the observed disloyal subscribers correctly. With a chance hit rate of 57,5% and a 25% improvement threshold of 71,8%, the 69,5% overall percentage of correct predictions is slightly lower. Political mismatch can therefore not be said to be a very relevant predictor for disloyalty.

350 Chapter 9 Conclusions Chapter 9

9.0 Introduction

The main conclusion of this study is that newspaper subscribers do not cancel or renew their subscription after a rational comparison of their ideal mix of articles and photographs with the mix the paper supplies. This conclusion has at least two important consequences: 1. the content of a paper has no direct impact on newspaper loyalty. 2. the decision to cancel or renew a subscription is not necessarily motivated by logical reasoning, the way we define rationality. The second conclusion we want to emphasize is that the delivery of a newspaper and newspaper brand contribute by far more to the explanation of newspaper loyalty than any variable in the model. The model contains three kinds of variables: variables that indicates a cognitive, analytical, rational explanation; variables that suggest an affective, holistic, emotional explanation and variables that point to a conative, action oriented, circumstantial explanation. The third conclusion we want to emphasize is that more than three quarters of newspaper subscribers do not have preferences or consider themselves not able to put those preferences into words. The fourth conclusion we want to emphasize is that more people do not always do what they intent to do than there are people that act according to their intentions. The fifth conclusion we want to emphasize is that layout of a newspaper has an impact on the perception of what is supplied. If a newspaper subscriber does not even consider ending his subscription, we call this newspaper loyalty. Even if he thinks that he does not get the mix of articles and pictures he prefers to stay loyal. The passion for this newspaper is unconditional. This study is about the origins of newspaper loyalty. It tries to answer the question why some subscribers stay loyal and others don’t. There are people who think that the answer to this question is so obvious that a study like this is redundant. In the old days it was simple. Left- wing people buy left-wing papers and right-wing people buy right-wing papers. Nowadays we don’t know exactly what is left and right, political

352 Conclusions parties don’t, people don’t and newspaper don’t. So it is difficult to confirm one’s identity with a newspaper. Buying a particular newspaper, having a particular subscription does not show the world anymore who we are, as in the old days. To put this supposition to a test we asked the interviewees to their political preference. They had six possibilities: left, center left, middle, center-right, right and none, or don’t want to answer. At another moment during the interview (43 questions earlier) we asked to characterize all the national newspapers according to the same classification. If the newspaper had the same political preference as the interviewee we call the conclusion a match, in all other cases we call it a mismatch. Now we have the variable match and mismatch we could calculate the regression of political preference on newspaper loyalty. There is no relation between the two.

9.1 Internet, steady, but slower

The conviction that the Internet is a substitute for a newspaper, especially among the young is another widespread alleged cause of newspaper decline. An extensive survey that we undertook -the core of this study - re- veals that only 9% of the Dutch population between 13 and 25 years of age are very firm in their opinion that the Internet is an alternative for a newspaper.* The young share this conviction with the oldest age groups: 50-65: 7% ; >65: 6%. The all age percentage is 11. Among the young more respondents disagree than agree with statements that underline a positive attitude towards the Internet (58%). In the age group between 50 and 65, the percentage that disagrees is 64%. Above 65 it is 71%. We are not playing down the importance of the Internet, but as was shown in chapters 7 and 8 the impact of other variables is more substantial. The regression between newspaper delivery and newspaper

* survey 1 n = 4.140, is the main survey among a sample of the Dutch population, made representative for age, region and gender. survey 2, is a boost of survey 1 to enlarge the population of individual national newspaper subscribers and survey 3, is a survey among a sample of the Dutch population, made representative for age, region and gender n = 2.500

353 Chapter 9 loyalty e.g. is even four times stronger than the regression between newspaper content and newspaper loyalty.

9.2 Content brand and newspaper loyalty

A regression analysis among a sample of the population of the Neth- erlands stratified for age, gender and location showed a significant regression between content and newspaper loyalty indeed, yet the contribution is so small that changing newspaper content does not increase newspaper sale. This is an unexpected conclusion, for common knowledge and suppo- sitions of most people that work in the industry of newspaper publishing think the reverse is true. Maybe there is a substantial impact of content if we make the same calculation for a population that consists of only quality paper subscribers (NRC Handelsblad, nrc.next, de Volkskrant and Trouw). The unique selling point of those papers is the quality of its content. We may therefore safely assume that a subscriber of a quality paper takes a subscription because of its content. So we repeated the regression analysis for a population that consists only of subscribers of the Dutch quality papers NRC Handelsblad, nrc. next, de Volkskrant and Trouw.* In the quality sample content plays no part in the explanation of newspaper loyalty. In the popular sample content makes a contribution, but it is small. Closing the gap between demand and perceived supply improves the lopsided relation between demand and supply, but after the improvement the publisher will not sell more newspapers than before. Content has no substantial impact on newspaper loyalty. It increases the odds for disloyalty with 15,1%. It is ironical to see that public-oriented journalism is not the most profitable option, is not per se commercial. The contention that content has no substantial impact on newspaper loyalty does not exclude a substantial indirect impact. The survey shows a more positive brand relates to a smaller mismatch and vice versa.

* We call them the quality sample, and we refer to the sample of the subscribers of the population of popular papers as the popular sample.

354 Conclusions

The regression is small. But the regression is measured looking at the entire content, all the articles, graphs, photos and drawings are taking into account, whereas we think that the perceived supply is especially determined by the perception of the leading texts and images, such as the opening of page one and three, the major picture of page one, three and five, and that the perception is influenced by expectation, by the size of the pictures and fonts, the frequency of layout elements, the variation of those elements, and the intensity of the layout elements. When we take all this into consideration a change of feature articles and a change of layout can influence sales if it reinforces or contradicts the brand.

9.3 The weakness of will

The original problem is that there is a difference between the intention to do something and the execution of the intention. This is e.g. the case if a reader intends to read an article he sees in the paper that explains why there is an economic crisis going on; but when the moment arrives to start reading he does not read the article he intends to read, but he starts to read a column written by somebody he knows to be hilarious most of the time. This phenomenon is known as the weakness of will. This study explains that an astonishing 67% of the 4.155 respondents admit to have a weak will. Those people were asked to tell us what they should read first and what they do read first by allocating a total of hundred points over areas of interest, specific functions and perspectives. The results were presented in six lists per category: area of interest, specific functions and perspectives. Three lists with the ranking of what should be read first and three lists with the ranking what actually was read first. On top of the ‘should list’ of areas of interest we see successively politics, disasters, accidents and calamities and society. On top of the ‘do list’ we see successively disasters, accidents and calamities, crime and sports. On top of the ‘should list’ of specific functions figured elucidation that is on place five (out of seven) on the ‘do list’.

355 Chapter 9

On top of the ‘should list’ of perspectives we see social perspective. That is not on top of the ‘do list’. On top of that list is the human perspective.

9.4 Subordination of the rational model

An important conclusion we can draw from the empirical research is the subordination of the rational model. The regression analyses make it perfectly clear that the rational way to look at social reality is not the only way to look at it. The way reality is constructed and the way functions are defined is not always rational. People can behave affective, or conative and can come to a conclusion in a way that does not include reasoning. Bounded rationality is the vision that rationality is not always possible. According to the advocates of bounded rationality people cannot be rational, because they have not all the information they need to be rational, or they lack the skills to be rational. People want to be rational but they cannot be rational. We think there are psychological profiles and situations in which people don’t want to be rational. They come to a decision without a process of reasoning. Why? There is no reason why. People cannot reason without words. If a person has no words to his disposal that enables him to articulate his preferences he cannot make clear what his preferences are. In the sense that he cannot explain what his preferences are, because he does not have the words to utter his preferences.

9.5 Search, experience and credence attributes

In chapter 3 we made note of the difference between products with and without undisputable specifications. In marketing they are known as products with search, experience and credence attributes. The quality of products with the search attributes can be determined at the purchase. Who buys a black banana? The quality of products with experience attributes can be determined as we use them. Who goes back to a restaurant that was bad and expensive?

356 Conclusions

The quality of products with credence attributes can never be determined. What is the quality of gasoline? A newspaper is not a search product. This is not difficult to decide. You don’t know if the article is ‘fit for use’, or not ‘fit for use’, if you have not read it.* Deciding whether a newspaper article is a product with experience or credence attributes is not so evident. The answer depends on the possibility to determine at face value and objective (epistemologically objective) the quality of an article. If the answer is yes then newspaper articles have experience attributes, if the answer is no newspaper articles have credence attributes. Why it is important to make the distinction? In itself it is not important, but there is a discussion going on whether products with credence attributes are more sensitive to branding. The result of the surveys strongly suggest this is the case, because (1) only 23% know what they want and can put is this demand into words, and (2) brand has an important impact on newspaper loyalty. Most demands are fuzzy and rough and do not give a specific outline of the articles and photographs the subscriber wants to read. Those subscribers are very susceptible of the security and sense of belonging offered by a brand, on the one hand and a brand enables a reader to react against a quasi-tangible opponent. A reader can have a very strong negative opinion about a newspaper he never has read. He cannot imagine that he will ever read the newspaper, let alone buy it. Next to brand, layout influences a readers expectation what is in a newspaper. Layout is defined as the way newspaper elements are distributed and shaped. We distinguished the frequency of elements. Are they shaped in the same way (e.g. most shapes are horizontal rectangles) or in variety of ways (e.g. shapes can be horizontal or vertical rectangles, square or circles). The third criterion is the intensity of elements: the size of the fonts, the fonts are standard or bold, underlined, or not, sans serif, or serif, images are colored, or black and white, images are big, or small. On one side of the spectrum we find a layout of a paper that scores high on frequency, variation and intensity, on the other side a paper that scores low. The survey shows that a different layout results in a different content expectation and therefore in a different perception of supply.

* The phrasing is from quality guru Juran

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Conclusions

Epilogue For the people involved, the most important question has been consis- tently avoided throughout this study; that is: what is the future of the newspaper? An obvious reason is that it is difficult, if not impossible to study the future empirically. We must be very careful asking people to assess their own future behavior. It is much more reliable to ask about intentions. Newspaper loyalty is about intentions. A subscriber is loyal if he does not even think about ending his subscription.* The second reason is that this study is about the newspaper and its subscribers. We did not include the advertisers. To provide a reliable answer to The Question (Will there be a newspaper tomorrow?) the motives and behavior of advertisers must be known. In the meantime, we make assumptions based on long experience. We think that the printed newspaper will be marginalized. Not because the printed newspapers lack readers, but because the printed newspapers lack advertisements. Basically there are two things a newspaper publisher can do: decrease the costs and increase the income. Newspaper publishers are faced with four kinds of costs: the cost of paper, the cost of distribution, the cost of printing and the cost of content. The costs of paper and printing are more or less fixed. A publisher has to follow the market. It is impossible to cut in the cost of distribution, as it becomes more difficult every year to find enough ‘delivery boys’. The price of content is the only expenditure a publisher can cut without jeopardizing tomorrow’s paper. The only way to increase income is to change the medium: the newspaper on the screen of a tablet- computer such as an iPad. This transformation generates new ways of presenting content using different media. At the same time, the publisher will notice that he has control again over what used to be the fixed costs of paper and printing. Paper costs are reduced to zero and the cost of printing is replaced by computer costs which are a fraction of what the publisher spends on printing presses.

* In The Netherlands around 90% of the people that pay for a newspaper have a subscription

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In comparison with the distribution costs of a printed newspaper, the price you pay to distribute data to a tablet computer is negligible This is what we assume and perhaps someone will test this assumption and expand the study of newspaper loyalty.

360 Dankwoord

Dankwoord

Aan alle mensen die hebben bijgedragen aan de totstandkoming van dit boek ben ik dank verschuldigd. Aan het begin van deze meer dan zes jaar durende tocht staat Martijn Kleppe. Zonder zijn aansporing “eens met Beunders te gaan praten”, was deze studie er niet gekomen en zonder de suggestie van Henri Beunders tijdens dat gesprek “eens aan een proefschrift te denken”, kan hetzelfde worden gezegd. Dank aan beiden. Maar Henri dank ik niet alleen vanwege de suggestie te promoveren. Wie een jaar na de promotieaftrap hoort dat hij Parkinson heeft, een vervelende, maar niet fatale ziekte, toch bijna sterft, doordat de medi- sche professie een fout maakt. Wie merkt dat hij een groot deel van zijn werk niet meer kan doen, omdat hij onverstaanbaar is. Wie zelf ontdekt dat hij geen Parkinson heeft, maar MSA, een aandoening die lijkt op Parkinson, maar wel fataal is. En wie desondanks zijn proefschrift wil afmaken, die mag hopen dat hij iemand als Henri Beunders als promotor krijgt. Ik dank Marten Boon, zonder wiens loyaliteit aan zijn voormalige werkgever en zonder wiens handigheid met spss, maar vooral ook zonder wiens kennis van dit statistische programma er nooit correlaties zouden zijn berekend, laat staan regressies, niet de lineaire, maar de logistische. Zijn kennis van de statistiek in het algemeen en van SPSS in het bijzonder kan ik niet genoeg roemen. Dank aan het Stimuleringsfonds voor de Pers – in het bijzonder de voormalige directeur dr. Lou Lichtenberg – zonder wie er geen geld geweest zou zijn voor het empirische deel van het onderzoek. Dank aan Liz Steele, die het idioom en de grammatica van het Engels corrigeerde. Dank aan Allard Peeters die nooit te beroerd was antwoord te geven op vragen over de juiste toepassing van een statistische maat. Dank aan Catherine Towbin voor de Engelse vertaling van een stuk uit De Krant was Koning ten behoeve van hoofdstuk 5. Dank aan Koos Staal die helemaal van Groningen naar Rotterdam reed om te horen welke krantenpagina’s hij moest tekenen en dat ook deed. Dank aan Myrthe Langevoord voor het maken van handige samenvat- tingen.

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Dank aan Aad van Cortenberghe en Arendo Joustra die mij zes jaar lang bleven bestoken met hun journalistieke vragen en die bovendien een nieuwe inhoud gaven aan de functie van paranimf. Dank aan de velen die mij gedurende het schrijven in praktische en morele zin steunden: Steven Bakker, Hanneke Beijer, Hans Kik, Ronald van der Krogt, Loes Jansen Verplanke, Martijn de Rijk, Marion Stee- venz, Pieke Stuvel en Brigitte en Machteld Weusten. Dank aan mijn liefje Suzanne Weusten - die zich soms mevrouw De Wolff noemt - voor de manier waarop ze al die tijd wist om te gaan met een bezeten man. Dank ook aan mijn liefje voor de eindredactie van ‘de scriptie’, zoals ze mijn dissertatie aanvankelijk betitelde. Haar geduld, als ik weer eens een definitieve versie had bewerkt, een journalistieke doodzonde, heb ik geregeld op de proef gesteld.

362 Appendix

Appendix 1

Questionnaire 1 Have you looked at a newspaper in the last twelve months?

The word newspaper refers here to national, local and free daily newspapers, with an exception of home delivered papers. 1 Yes

2 No → V7

2 Randomize

Here is a list of newspapers. Which paper do you read more often?

1 NRC Handelsblad 2 de Volkskrant 3 De Telegraaf 4 nrc.next 5 Trouw 6 Het Financieele Dagblad 7 AD landelijk 8 AD regional 9 Friesch Dagblad 10 Leeuwarder Courant 11 Dagblad van het Noorden 12 de Stentor 13 De Twentsche Courant Tubantia 14 De Gelderlander 15 Eindhovens Dagblad 16 Limburgs Dagblad 17 Dagblad De Limburger 18 BN/DeStem 19 Brabants Dagblad 20 PZC 21 De Gooi- en Eemlander 22 Barneveldse Krant 23 Haarlems Dagblad 24 IJmuider Courant 25 Leidsch Dagblad 26 Noordhollands Dagblad

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27 Het Parool 28 Spits 29 Metro 30 DAG 31 De Pers 32 None of those papers → V7

3 Not for V2.28-999

##V2## is your main newspaper. Which of the following is applicable? 1. I have a subscription to this paper 2. I buy this paper at least once a week 3. I read this paper at least once a week 4. I buy this newspaper once in a while 5. I read this paper once in a while

4 Only the titles that are not marked in V2, Randomize

Do you read any paper on this list ? 1. None of these papers 2. NRC Handelsblad 3. de Volkskrant 4. De Telegraaf 5. nrc.next 6. Trouw 7. Het Financieele Dagblad 8. AD landelijk 9. AD regionaal 10. Friesch Dagblad 11. Leeuwarder Courant 12. Dagblad van het Noorden 13. de Stentor 14. De Twentsche Courant Tubantia 15. De Gelderlander 16. Eindhovens Dagblad 17. Limburgs Dagblad 18. Dagblad De Limburger 19. BN/DeStem 20. Brabants Dagblad

364 Appendix

21. PZC 22. De Gooi- en Eemlander 23. Barneveldse Krant 24. Haarlems Dagblad 25. IJmuider Courant 26. Leidsch Dagblad 27. Noordhollands Dagblad 28. Het Parool

5 Only the titles that are not marked in V2, Randomize

Which is applicable ? I buy this I read this I buy this I read this newspaper paper at least I never I have a paper paper at least once a week read subscription once in a once in a once a but I never while while week buy it. 1. NRC Handelsblad 2. de Volkskrant 3. De Telegraaf 4. nrc.next 5. Trouw 6. Het Financieele Dagblad 7. AD landelijk 8. AD regionaal 9. Friesch Dagblad 10. Leeuwarder Courant Dagblad van het 11. Noorden 12. de Stentor De Twentsche Courant 13. Tubantia 14. De Gelderlander 15. Eindhovens Dagblad 16. Limburgs Dagblad 17. Dagblad De Limburger 18. BN/DeStem 19. Brabants Dagblad 20. PZC 21. De Gooi- en Eemlander

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22. Barneveldse Krant 23. Haarlems Dagblad 24. IJmuider Courant 25. Leidsch Dagblad 26. Noordhollands Dagblad 27. Het Parool

6 Only the titles that are not marked in V2, Randomize

Which is applicable ? I read this paper I read this paper at I read this paper I never read this every day least once a week once in a while paper 1. Spits 2. Metro 3. DAG 4. De Pers

7 Can you indicate how often you read a home delivered paper?

1. Every week

2. Once in a while

3. Never

8 Loyalty Only V3.1 & not V1.2 e/o V2.28-999

In the past year, have you considered ending your subscription on ##v2##? 1. Yes 2. No

9 Only V3.1 & not V1.2 e/o V2. 28-999

How big is the chance that you will end your subscription on ##v2## in the future ?

1. Zero 2. Small 3. Big 4. Very big

366 Appendix

10 Not V1.2, V2. 28-999 and V3.1

In the past year, have you considered to subscribe to ##v2##?

1. Yes 2. No

11 Not V1.2, V2. 28-999 and V3.1

How great is the chance that you will subscribe to ##v2## in the future?

1. Zero 2. Small 3. Great 4. Very great

12 Not V1.2, V2. 28-999 and V3.1 Which of the six statements below is most applicable? 1. I never buy a single issue of ##v2## 2. I do not think that in the future I will buy a single issue of ##v2## 3. I think that in the future I will buy a single issue of ##v2## less often. 4. I think that in the future I will buy a single issue of ##v2## just as many times. 5. I think that in the future I will buy a single issue of ##v2## more often 6. I think that in the future I will buy a single issue of ##v2## much more often.

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13 Here is a list of areas of interest that could be covered in your paper. Are there any items you usually skip ? 1. Politics 2. Crime 3. Calamities (disasters, accidents, fires) 4. Mobility 5. Economics & personal finance 6. Sport 7. Science 8. Reflection (philosophy, psychology and religion) 9. Education 10. Society 11. Health & physical care 12. Living 13. Traveling 14. Arts & culture 15. Media (radio, television, Internet) 16. Leisure time 17. Celebrities 18. Gadgets 19. Games & relaxation

14. How much do you want to read about following areas of interest? We ask you to distribute one hundred points. The more you want to read about a certain area of interest, the more points you give. You do not have to give points to areas of interest you do not want to read about. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. 1. Politics 2. Crime 3. Calamities (disasters, accidents, fires) 4. Mobility 5. Economics & personal finance 6. Sport 7. Science 8. Reflection (philosophy, psychology and religion) 9. Education 10. Society 11. Health & physical care 12. Living 13. Traveling 14. Arts & culture

368 Appendix

15. Media (radio, television, Internet) 16. Leisure time 17. Celebrities 18. Gadgets 19. Games & relaxation

15. How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to the following areas of interest ? We ask you again to distribute one hundred points. The more attention you think ##V2## pays to an area of interest,the more points you give. You do not have to give points to areas of interest the paper does not give any attention to according to your opinion. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. 1. Politics 2. Crime 3. Calamities (disasters, accidents, fires) 4. Mobility 5. Economics & personal finance 6. Sport 7. Science 8. Reflection (philosophy, psychology and religion) 9. Education 10. Society 11. Health & physical care 12. Living 13. Traveling 14. Arts & culture 15. Media (radio, television, Internet) 16. Leisure time 17. Celebrities 18. Gadgets 19. Games & relaxation

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16. How much do you want to read about local news, national news and world news? Again we ask you to distribute one hundred points. The more you want to read about your region, the Netherlands or the world, the more points you give to what you prefer. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. Local National World

17. How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to local news, news about the Netherlands and world news? Again we ask you to distribute one hundred points. The more attention you think ##V2## pays to local news, national news and world news the more points you give. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. Local National World

18. How much do you want to read about the following kinds of articles? We ask you again to distribute one hundred points. The more you want to read a certain kind of article, the more points you give. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. The bare facts 1. Enables the reader to get acquainted with unconnected facts or events Overview 2. Enables the reader to know facts or events that have been put into a context: historical, future-oriented or geographical Elucidation 3. Enables the reader to know why the facts have taken place Opinion 4. Enables the reader to know the paper’s opinion Advice and tips 5. Enables the reader to act effectively in a specific situation Emotion 6. Enables the reader to commit emotionally Entertainment 7. Enables the reader to amuse himself

370 Appendix

19. Only for V1.1 & not V2.999 How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to these kinds of articles? We ask you again to distribute one hundred points. The more attention you think ##V2## pays, the more points you give. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. The bare facts 1. Enables the reader to get acquainted with unconnected facts or events Overview 2. Enables the reader to know facts or events that have been put into a context: historical, future-oriented or geographical Elucidation 3. Enables the reader to know why the facts have taken place Opinion 4. Enables the reader to know the paper’s opinion Advice and tips 5. Enables the reader to act effectively in a specific situation Emotion 6. Enables the reader to commit emotionally Entertainment 7. Enables the reader to amuse himself

20. An article can be written from different angles. How much do you want to read about the following kinds of articles? We ask you again to distribute one hundred points. The more you want to read a certain angle, the more points you give. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. 1. The human perspective: viewed from personal experience 2. The social perspective: how people and groups of people relate to each other. 3. The institutional perspective: how administrators look at a problem.

21. Only for V1.1 & not V2.999 How much attention do you think ##V2## pays to this angle? We ask you again to distribute one hundred points. The more attention you think ##V2## pays, the more points you give. At the bottom of the list you can see how many points are left. 1. The human perspective: viewed from personal experience 2. The social perspective: how people and groups of people relate to each other. 3. The institutional perspective: how administrators look at a problem.

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22. In a newspaper, how much do want to read about the kind of information listed below? Again you can allocate one hundred points. 1. Information you can use in taking decisions in everyday life. 2. Information that can be of interest but you cannot use in taking decisions.

23. Only for V1.1 & not V2.999 How much of the following kind of information do you think ##V2## offers? Again you can allocate one hundred points. 1. Information you can use in taking decisions in everyday life. 2. Information that can be of interest but you cannot use in taking decisions.

24. Do these newspapers have a political preference and if so Which is this preference? None Center Left Center left Center Right right 1. NRC Handelsblad 2. de Volkskrant 3. De Telegraaf 4. Spits 5. Metro 6. nrc.next Het Financieele 7. Dagblad 8. Trouw 9. De Pers 10. DAG 11. AD

25. It can happen sometimes that you want to do something that you think is really important, but when the moment arrives to do it, you do not. This could happen when you read a newspaper; you do not always start to read the article you feel you should read first. Do you recognize this feeling? 1. I certainly recognize this feeling. 2. I recognize this feeling now that you mention it 3. I do not recognize this feeling. → V30

372 Appendix

26. Mark three areas of interest you should start to read first and mark three areas of interest you start to read first as a rule in reality. The two lists could be the same, but that is not necessarily the case. I should read this first This is what I read first according to which I consider in reality to be right 1. Politics 2. Crime 3. Calamities (disasters, accidents, fires) 4. Mobility 5. Economics & personal finance 6. Sport 7. Science 8. Reflection (philosophy, psychology and religion) 9. Education 10. Society 11. Health & physical care 12. Living 13. Traveling 14. Arts & culture 15. Media (radio, television, Internet) 16. Leisure time 17. Celebrities 18. Gadgets 19. Games & relaxation

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27. Mark three kinds of articles you should start to read first and mark three kinds of articles you, as a rule, start to read first in reality. The two lists could be the same, but that is not necessary. I should read this first This is what I read first according to what I consider in reality to be right 1. The bare facts Enables the reader to get acquainted with unconnected facts or events 2. Overview Enables the reader to know facts or events that have been put into a context: historical, future-oriented or geographical 3. Elucidation Enables the reader to know why the facts have taken place 4. Opinion Enables the reader to know the paper’s opinion 5. Advice and tips Enables the reader to act effectively in a specific situation 6. Emotion Enables the reader to commit emotionally 7. Entertainment Enables the reader to amuse himself

28. Mark three kinds of articles from the list below you should start to read first and mark three kinds of articles you, as a rule, start to read first in reality. The two lists could be the same, but that is not necessary. I should read this This is what I read first in first according to reality what I consider to be right 1. The human perspective: viewed from personal experience 2. The social perspective: how people and groups of people relate to each other. 3. The institutional perspective: how administrators look at a problem.

374 Appendix

29. Mark three kinds of articles from the list below you should start to read first and mark three kinds of articles you, as a rule, start to read first in reality. The two lists could be the same, but that is not necessary. I should read this This is what I read first in first according to reality what I consider to be right 1. Information you can use in taking decisions in everyday life. 2. Information that can be of interest but you cannot use in taking decisions

30. As a rule, how much time do you spend reading a paper during the week? 1. During the week I hardly have the time to read a newspaper. 2. Less than half an hour. 3. Half an hour 4. One hour 6. More than one hour 7. I don’t know

31. As a rule, how much time do you spend reading a paper during the weekend? 1. In the weekend I hardly have the time to read a newspaper. 2. Less than half an hour 3. Half an hour 4. One hour 5. Two hours 6. More than two hours 7. I don’t know

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32. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. There are so many media I want to keep up with that I often do not find the time to read a newspaper 2. It often happens that I do not look forward to reading a newspaper 3. I often have the feeling that I don’t have enough time to really read a newspaper 4. It happens regularly that I leave a newspaper unread 5. I always find the time to read a newspaper 6. If I’m busy, most of the time I do not manage to read a newspaper 7. To be honest, I only read a newspaper if I have time to spare 8. There are so many media I want to keep up with that I often do not find the time to read a newspaper 9. It often happens that I do not look forward to reading a newspaper

33. Which statement do you most agree with? 1. I know what I want to read in the newspaper and I’m able to put these preference into words 2. I know what I want to read in the newspaper but I find it difficult to put these preferences into words 3. Only if I have a newspaper in front of me do I know what I want to read 4. I have no particular preferences about what I want to read the newspaper

34. Does it ever happen that ##V2## is not delivered? 1. That happens 2. That does not happen

35. Please indicate how many times ##V2## was not delivered in the past six months.

376 Appendix

36. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: bad delivery is a reason to end my subscription Totally agree Agree No opinion Disagree Totally disagree

37. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally agree Agree No Disagree Totally opinion disagree 1. People that are important to me would be surprised if I did not read a newspaper 2. Reading a paper, I feel more connected to my environment 3. Having a newspaper gives people status 4. People that are important to me think that you ought to read a newspaper 5. Reading a newspaper means that I can focus on something else for a moment

38. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally agree Agree No Disagree Totally opinion disagree 1. I would be confronted by people that are important to me if I never read a newspaper 2. Reading a newspaper makes me more interesting to other people 3. Reading a paper enables people to participate in the talk of the day 4. I read a newspaper because it is my democratic duty to inform myself with news and backgrounds 5. Reading a newspaper is one of the pleasant moments of the day

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39. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally agree Agree No Disagree Totally opinion disagree 1. Sometimes I talk to friends, family or colleagues about articles I read in the paper 2. Reading a newspaper gives people the feeling that they belong to something 3. People like to show others that they read a newspaper 4. Everybody ought to read a newspaper 5. Reading a newspaper is a pleasant way to fill in an empty moment

40. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. It happens that I consult family, friends, or colleagues about what I read in the paper 2. People who do not read a newspaper take the risk others considering them stupid 3. People that are important to me think that you need to read a newspaper to know what is happening in the world 4. Reading a newspaper enables me to relax and detach from daily occupations 5. I think that I have failed if I do not read a newspaper 6. Reading a newspaper makes me feel good

41. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. Reading a newspaper is part of my daily routine 2. I always read a newspaper at the same moment of the day 3. A day without a newspaper is incomplete

378 Appendix

42. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. I read a newspaper because I got used to it when I was young 2. I read the same kind of newspapers I was raised with

43. What is your opinion about the statements below concerning paid newspapers? Totally No Totally Agree Disagree agree opinion disagree 1. I think a newspaper is too expensive. I think a newspaper is too expensive 2. if you take into consideration what is offered Newspapers are worth every penny 3. you pay for them

44. What is your opinion about the statements below? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. A newspaper I pay for is better than a free newspaper. 2. A newspaper you pay for has more status than a free newspaper. 3. After reading a free newspaper I always have the feeling to have missed something 4. I don’t want to pay for a newspaper

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45. What is your opinion about the statements below? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. ##V2## is a paper you can always trust 2. ##V2## always delivers what it promises 3. ##V2## is highly respected 4. I know what ##V2## stands for 5. I know what the difference is between##V2## and other newspapers 6. ##V2## sets the standard others follow 7. There is no other newspaper like##V2## 8. I cannot imagine a world without ##V2## 9. Subscribers speak highly of the quality of ##V2## 10. ##V2## is perfect for people like me

46. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the name ##V2##?

47. What is your opinion about the statements below?

Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. You can always trust newspapers 2. Newspapers always deliver what they promise 3. Newspapers are highly respected 4. It is always clear what a newspaper stands for 5. I know what differentiates newspapers from other media such as radio, television or a website

6. What is in a newspaper is always taken seriously. 7. A newspaper is something unique. 8. I cannot imagine a world without newspapers 9. People who read newspapers always say how good they are 10. Newspapers are perfect for people like me.

380 Appendix

48. Is the content of this paper in your opinion positive or negative? Very positive Positive Neutral Negative Very negative 1. NRC Handelsblad 2. de Volkskrant 3. De Telegraaf 4. Spits 5. Metro 6. nrc.next 7. Het Financieele Dagblad 8. Trouw 9. De Pers 10. DAG 11. AD

49. Is the content of this paper in your opinion positive or negative? Very positive Positive Neutral Negative Very negative 1. ##V2##

50. Do you belong to the type of people that read this newspaper? I belong to the type I belong to some I do not belong to the of people that read extent to the type of type of people that read this newspaper people that read this this newspaper newspaper 1. NRC Handelsblad 2. de Volkskrant 3. De Telegraaf 4. Spits 5. Metro 6. nrc.next 7. Het Financieele Dagblad 8. Trouw 9. De Pers 10. DAG 11. AD

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51. Do you belong to the type of people that read this newspaper? I belong to the kind I belong to some extent I do not belong to the of people that read to the kind of people kind of people that this paper that read this paper read this paper 1. ##V2##

52. Could you picture ##V2##?

53. If there was only one way to get the 1. Paid local newspaper news, which medium would you 2. Paid national newspaper prefer? 3. Free newspaper 4. Television 5. Radio 6. Internet 7. Teletext 8. Magazine

54. How do you prefer to Radio Television Teletext Magazines Newspapers Internet Do not be informed about the want this kind of information kind of listed below? information 1. Politics 2. Crime 3. Calamities (disasters, accidents, fires) 4. Mobility 5. Economics & personal finance 6. Sport 7. Science 8. Reflection (philosophy, psychology and religion) 9. Education 10. Society 11. Health & physical care 12. Living 13. Traveling 14. Arts & culture

382 Appendix

15. Media (radio, television, Internet) 16. Leisure time 17. Celebrities 18. Gadgets 19. Games & relaxation

55. How do you prefer to be Radio Television Teletext Magazines Newspaper Internet Do not want informed about the kind of this kind of information listed below? information 1. The bare facts enables the reader to get acquainted with unconnected facts or events 2. Overview Enables the reader to know facts or events that have been put into a context: historical, future-oriented or geographical 3. Elucidation Enables the reader to know why the facts have taken place 4. Opinion Enables the reader to know the paper’s opinion 5. Advice and tips Enables the reader to act effectively in a specific situation 6. Emotion Enables the reader to commit emotionally 7. Entertainment Enables the reader to amuse himself

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56. How do you prefer to be informed about the kind of information listed below? Radio Television Teletext Magazines Newspaper Internet Do not want this kind of information 1. The human perspective: viewed from personal experience 2. The social perspective: how people and groups of people relate to each other. 3. The institutional perspective: how administrators look at a problem.

57. How do you prefer to be informed about the kind of information listed below? Radio Television Teletext Magazines Newspaper Internet Do not want this kind of information 1. Information you can use in taking decisions in everyday life. 2. Information that can be of interest but you cannot use in taking decisions

58. What is your opinion about the statements below? Totally Agree No Disagree Totally agree opinion disagree 1. I read the news less in print and more and more on the Internet. 2. You do not have to read a paper to know what is happening in the world. 3. It is much easier to follow the news on the Internet than in a newspaper. 4. A newspaper offers me more news and background than the Internet 5. Reading a paper on the Internet is as good as reading it in print. 6. A news site offers me more than a printed newspaper.

59. How satisfied are you with ##v2## in general? Rate between 1 and 10

60. To what extent does ##v2## meet your expectations? Rate between 1 and 10

384 Appendix

61. To what extent does ##v2## correspond with what you consider to be an ideal newspaper Rate between 1 and 10

62. Are you male or female? Male

Female 63. What is your age? Between 13 and 24 Between 25 and 34 Between 35 and 49 Between 50 and 64 65 years and older 64. Are you currently employed? Yes 36 hours or more Between 20 and 36 hours 20 hours or less No 65. What is the highest level of education Lager onderwijs you have completed? LBO/VMBO MAVO MBO HAVO/VWO HBO/WO WO postdoctoraal Don’t know / don’t want to tell 66. Could you give an indication of your No income net monthly household income? Up to € 500.- € 1.000.- or less Between € 1.000.- and € 1.500.- Between € 1.500.- and € 2.000.- Between € 2.000.- and € 2.500.- Between € 2.500.- and € 3.000.- Between € 3.000.- and € 3.500.- More than € 3.500.- Don’t know / don’t want to tell

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67 What is your political preference? 1. Left 2. Center left 3. Center 4. Center right 5. Right 6. None

68. How did you vote at the most recent parliamentary elections?

69. Do you have comments about this questionnaire or other remarks?

386 Appendix

Appendix 2

Questionnaire set up

Measurement and coding procedures of the variables in the conceptual model.

Variable Type of Concept Coding procedure name in variable data file The variable representing primary functions in the model, expresses the total mismatch between demand and the perception of supply of every respondent with regard to his or her primary title. Primary functions are measured with questions 13 through 22. Questions 13, 15, 17, 19 and 21 measure demand, questions 14, 16, 18, 20 and 22 measure perception of supply. To obtain one variable OV1_ Primary expressing the mismatch between demand and perception, we PF_TOT_ functions subtracted demand from perception, yielding the mismatch on every VERSCHIL aspect of the primary functions (for instance demand politics is 40, perception is 50, mismatch is +10). We then added up all the separate aspects into one variable expressing the total level of mismatch. In the this operation we ignored the sign of the difference, because both too much or too little supply constitutes a mismatch. The psychological secondary functions are measured with statements 40.3, 37.4, 38.4, 39.4 and 40.5 in the questionnaire. Respondents scored the statements with a 5-scale measure. To obtain a single variable expressing the scores of respondents on this concept, OV2_SF_ Cognitive Psychological we added up the scores on the statements into PSY2 one variable. The measurement consistency of the statements was determinant by calculating the Secondary Cronbach’s alpha for the set of statements, which is functions fairly good with an alpha of .770. The social secondary functions consist of 12 statements (37.0, 38.0, 38.1, 39.1, 40.1, 37.2, 39.2, 40.2, 37.3, 38.3, 39.3, 40.4), which were scored by OV2_SF_ Cognitive Social respondents on a 5-point scale. We added up the SOC scores on these statements into one variable. The measurement consistency of the statements has a Cronbach’s alpha of .915.

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Type of Variable name in Concept Coding procedure variable data file

Brand score is measured by using a standard set of statements for which we report a high alpha value, .870. The statements Brand score correspond to question 45.0 to 45.9 in the questionnaire. The OV3_BS_BBLB_PT scores (ranging from +2 to -2) on each statement were added up to create one variable with scores ranging from +30 to -30. Habit was measured by letting respondents score four statements on a 5-point scale. The consistency is high with an Habit OV12_GW2 alpha of .884. The scores (ranging from +2 to -2) are added up to yield one variable. Tradition was measured by letting respondents score two statements (42.0 and 42.1) on a 5-point scale. The consistency Tradition OV13_TR is fairly high with an alpha of .702. The scores (ranging from +2 to -2) are added up to yield one variable. The general media preference was measured by Affective four statements on Internet as an alternative to newspapers, corresponding to questions 58.0, 58.2, 58.4 and 58.5 in the questionnaire. The General OV6_IA_3 consistency is high with an alpha of .863. The scores on the 5-point scale of each statement (ranging from +2 to -2) are added up into one Medium variable. preference Specific medium preference is measured by letting respondents choose their preferred medium for all the aspects of primary functions (33 in total). The amount of times Internet is Specific OV5_MV_Internet chosen for these aspects is then added up to yield a variable that expresses the proportion of specific content that respondents choose to obtain through Internet instead of newspapers.

388 Appendix

Type of Variable name in Concept Coding procedure variable data file

This variable is measured using statements 43.0 and 43.1 in the questionnaire. The two statements were scored on a Price OV8_PR 5-point scale and added up to obtain a single variable with a Cronbach’s alpha of .854. This variable is measured using statements 44.0, 44.1 and 44.2 in the questionnaire. These statements were scored on a Free papers OV9_GK 5-point scale and added up to obtain a single variable with a Cronbach’s alpha of .787. As a proxy for consistency of delivery we asked respondents to state the number of times their subscription newspaper Delivery was not delivered in the past 6 months (statement 35 in the TGV_5 questionnaire). This stated number of non-deliveries is then Conative used in our model. Statements 30 and 31 in the questionnaire asked respondents to state the amount of time they spent reading their Time spent subscription newspaper on average during the week and in OV10_TG_TB reading the weekend respectively. To obtain the total amount of time spent reading, we added up these statements, yielding a single variable that we used in the model. Statements 32.0, 32.3, 32.4, 32.5, 32.6, 32.7 and 32.8 asked respondents about the extent to which they experienced a lack Lack of time of time to read their newspaper (on a 5-point scale). These OV11_IO_3 statements were added up to obtain a single variable, which has a measurement consistency of .860 (Cronbach’s alpha).

As a proxy for loyalty, we asked subscribers whether they considered ending their subscription (question 8). Respondents could respond with yes (1) and no (0). Respondents that did consider ending their subscription, were then asked (question Dependent Loyalty 9) to state whether the chance of actually doing it was very AV1_OPZ small (1), small (2), large (3) or very large (4). The scores of these two questions were then added up to obtain one variable of which the score (from 0 to 5) expresses the likeliness of subscribers ending their subscription in the future.

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1 Table 1 is composed out of data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), and the statistical branch of the Dutch Newspaper Association (Cebuco). 2 World Press Trends (2006). Paris: World Association of Newspapers. 3 K. Vandenbrande (2002). Verscholen achter de krant. Media, nieuws en bur- gerschap in het dagelijke leven. Een publieksonderzoek naar de betekenis en beleving van de krant in een gemediatiseerde laat-moderne samenleving. Brus- sel: VUB. 4 J. J. van Cuilenburg (1977). Lezer, krant en politiek. Amsterdam: Vrije Uni- versiteit; G. W. Noomen (1977). Beweren en motiveren. Een onderzoek naar de stelligheid van meningen bij kranten en lezers. Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit. 5 The journalist is called designer, because he decides about what he is going to write or broadcast, how he is doing it and with what perspective. Designer is not used in a narrow sense referring to the presentation of text and images. 6 T. Peterson (1984). The social responsibility theory. In F. S. Siebert, T. Peter- son & W. Schramm (Eds.), Four theories of the press (pp. 73-104). Urbana: University of Illinois. 7 H. D. Lasswell (1948). The structure and function of communication in society. In L. Bryson (Ed.), The communication of ideas. New York: Harper. 8 J. T. Klapper (1960). The effects of mass communication. Glencoe: Free Press. 9 E. Noelle-Neuman (1980). Die Schweigespirale. Öffentliche Meinung - Unsere soziale Haut. München: R.Piper & Co. Verlag. 10 M. L. DeFleur & S. Ball-Rokeach (1982). Theories of mass communication. New York: Longman. 11 G. Gerbner, L. Gross, M. Morgan & N. Signorielli (1994). Growing up with television: The cultivation perspective. In J. Bryant & D. Zillman (Eds.), Media effects: Advances in theory and research (pp. 17-41). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 12 M. E. McCombs & D. L. Shaw (1972). The agenda-setting function of mass media. Public Opinion Quarterly, 36.; B. Scheufele (2004). Framing effects approach: A theoretical and methodological critique. Communications 29. 13 P. J. Shoemaker & S. D. Reese (1996). Mediating the message. Theories of influences on mass media content. New York: Longman Publishers. 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid. 16 P. Dahlgren (1992). Introduction. In P. Dahlgren & C. Sparks (Eds.), Journal- ism and popular culture. London: Sage. 17 J. G. Blumler & E. Katz (1974). The uses of mass communications. Current perspectives on gratifications research. In F. Gerald Kline & P. Clarke (Eds.), Sage Annual Reviews of Communication Research. London: Sage; E. Katz, J. G. Blumler & M. Gurevitch (1973). Uses and gratifications research. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 37 (4); K. E. Rosengren, L. A. Wenner & P. Palmgreen (1985). Media Gratifications Research. Beverly Hills: Sage publications.

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18 G. Turner (2001). British Cultural Studies. International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences. 19 J.W. Carey (1992). Communication as culture. Essays on media and society. New York: Routledge. 20 K. Barnhurst & E. Wartella (1991). Newspapers and citizenship: Young adults subjective experience of newspapers. Critical Studies in Mass Communication, 8 ; H. Bausinger (1984). Media, technology and daily life. Media, Culture and Society. 6 (4). 21 L. Bogart (1989). Press and public; Who reads what, when, where and why in American newspapers. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates; K. Schönbach (1997). Zeitungen in den Neunzigern: Faktoren ihres Erfolgs: 350 Tageszeitungen auf dem Prüfstand. Bonn: ZV, Zeitungs - Verlag. 22 Peterson (1984). Social responsibility, 100. 23 Vandenbrande (2002). Verscholen, p. 33. 24 E. de Waal (2007). Online news: Uses and effects of news websites. Amster- dam: University of Amsterdam, p. 27. 25 Vandenbrande (2002). Verscholen. 26 J. Bryant & D. Miron (2004). Theory and research in mass communication. Journal of Communication, 663. 27 It is understandable that Bryant and Miron took a sample of the total supply, because it will take a researcher five years to read all the 7200 articles if the reading speed is 20 pages per hour, the average article is 25 pages and one is reading eight hours a day, five days a week, 45 weeks a year. This kind of calculation makes one realize that it’s impossible to keep up with the production of academic literature. If a researcher reads eight hours a day, 45 weeks in a year, for 65 years, with an average speed of 20 pages an hour and the average book has 250 pages, one could read 9.360 books in a lifetime. 28 See also the dissertation by K. van der Wal-Raeymakers (2001). Ontlezing? De stroeve relatie tussen een oud medium en een jong publiek voor krantenuitgevers. Unpublished dissertation, Universiteit van Gent. 29 P. Schnabel (Ed.). (2004). Individualisering & sociale integratie. Den Haag: Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau, p. 11; F. Huysmans, J. de Haan, & A. van den Broek (2004). Achter de schermen: Een kwart eeuw lezen, luisteren, kijken en internetten. Den Haag: Sociaal Cultureel Planbureau, p. 15. 30 R. D. Putman (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York, London, Toronto, Sydney: Simon & Schuster. 31 In het zicht van de toekomst: sociaal en cultureel rapport (2004). Den Haag: Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau. 32 K. Schönbach (2005, January 28). Het conflict moet uitkomst bieden. De Journalist. 33 P. Bakker (2004). Vijf jaar gratis dagbladen in Nederland: Gevolgen voor uitge- vers en lezers. Unpublished paper, University of Amsterdam; P. Bakker (2005). Trends in het mediagebruik van jongeren. Unpublished paper, University of Amsterdam. 34 P. Bakker (2007). About free dailies. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://www.newspaperinnovation.com; K. P. Mahoney & J. H. Collins (2005).

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Consumer newspaper choice in markets with free print options: Are free daily newspapers competition or opportunity for traditional paid products? The New York Times, Scarborough Research. 35 http://www.stir.nl; http://www.cebuco.nl, Retrieved May 4, 2012. 36 Leesgewoonten: sociale en culturele studies, 23 (1996). Rijswijk: Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau, p. 243. 37 A. Lijphart (1975). The politics of accommodation: Pluralism and democracy in the Netherlands. Berkeley: University of California Press. 38 S. Ybema (2003). De koers van de krant: Vertogen over identiteit bij Trouw en de Volkskrant. Amsterdam: Trouw/de Volkskrant; F. van Vree (1996). De metamorfose van een dagblad: Een journalistieke geschiedenis van de Volkskrant. Amsterdam: Meulenhoff. 40 According to the NOM just over 4% of the population older than 13 year of age never pick up a newspaper.; 71% of the Dutch population read a newspaper at least occasionally (including free papers) and 63% excluding. Vandenbrande (2002) emphasizes that the number of readers exceeds that of non readers by far. 41 C. H. Bentley (2000). Make my day: Ritual, dependency and the habit of newspaper reading. Oregon: University of Oregon. 42 K. Green (1999). How newsroom failures limit readership gains. Australian Studies in Journalism, 8, 18-36. 43 Ibid., 30. 44 H. J. Gans (1980). Deciding what’s news; a study of CBS News, NBC Nightly News, Newsweek and Time. New York: Vintage Books, pp. 230-248. 45 Bentley (2000). Make my day. 46 Y. Yi (1993). The determinants of consumer satisfaction: The moderating role of ambiguity. Advances in Consumer Research, 20; S. S. Srinivasan & B. D. Till (2002). Evaluation of search, experience and credence attributes: Role of brand name and product trial. Journal of product & brand management, 11 (7); V. A. Taylor & A. D. Miyazaki (1995). Assessing actual service performance: Incongruities between expectation and evaluation criteria. Advances in Con- sumer Research, 22. 47 M. Darby & E. Karni (1973). Free competition and the optimal amount of fraud. Journal of Law and Economics, 16 (1). 48 Schönbach (1997). Zeitungen in den Neunzigern. 49 R. K. Merton (1968). Social theory and social structure. New York: Free Press; J. Woodward (1980). Industrial organization: Theory and practice. New York: Oxford University Press, p. xviii. 50 R. K. Merton (1936). The unanticipated consequences of purposive social action. American Sociological Review, 1 (6); T. Parsons (1951). The social system. New York, London: The Free Press, Collier - Macmillan Limited; A. R. Radcliffe - Brown (1935). On the concept of function in social science. American Anthro- pologist, 37 (3). 51 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. 105. 52 J. R. Searle (1995). The construction of social reality. New York: The Free Press. The development of the stitt operator in deontic logic is also part of the same

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practical use of the concept of function. N. Belnap, M. Perloff, & M. Xu (2001). Facing the future: Agents and choices in our indeterminist world. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press; J. van der Hoven & G. J. Lokhorst (2002). De- ontic logic and computer-supported computer ethics. Metaphilosophy, 33 (3). 53 Searle (1995). The construction, pp. 4-5. 54 P. J. M. Verschuren (2002). Dogma’s en ontwikkelingen in wetenschap en methodologie; Bedreigingen en kansen. Unpublished oration, Katholieke Uni- versiteit Nijmegen. 55 D. McQuail (2005). McQuail’s mass communication theory. London: Sage. 56 D. A. Aaker (1991). Managing brand equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name. New York - Toronto: The Free Press. 57 D. McQuail (1997). Audience analysis. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications Inc. 58 M. R. Levy & S. Windahl (1985). The concept of audience activity. In K. E. Rosengren, L. A. Wenner & P. Palmgreen (Eds.), Media gratifications research. Beverly Hills: Sage; P. Palmgreen, L. A. Wenner, & K. E. Rosengren (1985). Uses and gratifications research: The past ten years. In K. E. Rosengren, L. A. Wenner & P. Palmgreen (Eds.), Media Gratifications. Current Perspectives. Beverly Hills: Sage. 59 P. Kotler & G. Armstrong (2006). Principles of marketing - Eleventh edition. Up- per Saddle River, NJ: Pearson / Prentice Hall; A. H. Maslow (1943). Appendix: A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50 (4). 60 J. R. Searle (2001). Rationality in action Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press; S. Stroud & C. Tappolet (2003). Weakness of will and practical irrationality. Oxford: Clarendon Press; R. Dunn (1987). The possibility of weakness of will. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. 61 Schönbach (1997). Zeitungen in den Neunzigern. 62 Van Cuilenburg (1977). Lezer, krant en politiek. 63 P. Checkland (1981). Systems thinking, systems practice. Chicester: John Wiley & Sons, p 13. 64 Searle (1995). The construction, pp. 8-12. 65 J. R. Searle (2007). Freedom & neurobiology. New York: Columbia University Press, p. 83. 66 F. Collin (1997). Social reality: the problems of philosophy. London, New York: Routledge. 67 V. Burr (2003). Social construction - Second edition. London, New York: Rout- ledge, Taylor & Francis Group, pp. 1-27. 68 I. Hacking (2003). The social construction of what? Cambridge, London: Har- vard University Press, p 4. 69 P. Berger & T. Luckmann (1966). The social construction of reality: A treatise in the sociology of knowledge. New York: Anchor Books Doubleday & Company, Inc. 70 W. I. Thomas & F. Znaniecki (1958). The Polish peasant in Europe and America. New York: Dover, p 68. 71 W. I. Thomas (1967). The unadjusted girl: With cases and standpoint for behavior analysis. New York, Evanston, London: Harper Torchbooks, Harper & Row Publishers, p. 42.

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72 Thomas (1967). Unadjusted Girl. 73 Ibid., p 85. 74 Ibid. 75 Thomas & Znaniecki (1958). Polish peasant, p. 21. 76 Ibid. 77 Searle (1995). The construction. 78 Ibid., p. 10. 79 Ibid., p. 5. 80 Ibid., p. 121. 81 Ibid., p 4. Because of its importance the reader will run across this citation more than once. 82 J. Rex (1961). Key problems of sociological theory. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul; J. Elster (1990). Merton’s functionalism and the unintended consequences of action. In J. Clark, C. Modgil & S. Modgil (Eds.), Robert Merton: Consensus and controversy (pp. 129–35). London: Falmer Press. 83 Merton (1968). Social theory, p 105. 84 Searle (1995). The construction, p 13. 85 Ibid., pp. 13-14. 86 H. A. Simon (1957). Models of man: social and rational. New York, London, Sydney: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 87 S. Epstein (1986). Cognitive-experiential self-theory: An integrative theory of personality. In R. C. Curtis (Ed.), The Relational Self. New York: Guildford. 88 J. Haidt (2001). The Emotional dog and its rational tail: social intuitionist approach to moral judgment. Psychological review, 108(4), 814-834. 89 Ibid., p. 814. 90 W. James (1992). Pragmatism in focus. New York: Routledge, p. 41. 91 J. Dewey (1960). The quest for certainty: A study of the relation of knowledge and action. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, p. 45. 92 J. Dewey (1997). How we think. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., pp. 137-138. 93 C. S. Peirce (1966). Charles S. Peirce: Selected writings: Values in a universe of chance. New York: Dover Publications, Inc. 94 J. P. Murphy & R. Rorty (1990). Pragmatism from Peirce to Davidson. Boulder, San Francisco, Oxford: Westview Press. 95 James, Pragmatism, p. 39. 96 Ibid., p. 39. 97 Ibid., p. 39. 98 B. Berelson (1955). What missing the newspaper means. In W. Schramm (Ed.), The process and effects of mass communication (pp. 36-47). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press. 99 P. Kotler & G. Armstrong (2006). Principles of marketing - Eleventh edition. Up- per Saddle River, NJ: Pearson / Prentice Hall; M. E. Porter (1985). Competitive advantage, creating and sustaining superior performance. New York, London: The Free Press, Collier Macmillan Publishers. 100 B. H. Schmitt (1999). Experiential marketing. New York: The Free Press. 101 Ibid.

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102 It is tempting to extend our search and include an investigation into the origins of demand. Is the demand an intrinsic feature, caused by a fundamental human need, or is it contingent and subject to psychological, cultural, social, or economical circumstances. Answering these questions may start to illuminate the origins of demand. We will not try to answer this question. In order to test our main disconfirmation hypothesis it is necessary to describe demand not to explain it. 103 Kotler & Armstrong (2006). Principles of marketing. 104 Merriam-Webster (2011) Merriam-Webster online. 105 Maslow (1943). Appendix, 221-271; F. G. Goble (2004). The third force: The psychology of Abraham Maslow. Chapel Hill, NC: Maurice Bassett. 106 D. Levine (1985). The flight from ambiguity: Essays to social and cultural theory. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, p. 20. 107 Ibid., p. 21. 108 D. Sperber & D. Wilson (2001). Relevance: Communication and cognition (2nd ed.). Oxford, UK & Cambridge, USA: Blackwell Publishing. 109 D. Raffman (2002). Vagueness without paradox. In D. Graff & T. Williamson (Eds.), Vagueness. Aldershot: Darthmouth. p. 437. 110 F. Ackerman (1994). Roots and consequences of vagueness. Philosophical perspectives, 8, 129-136; R. A. Sorensen (2006). Vagueness. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Fall 2006. Retrieved from http://plato.stanford. edu/archives/fall2006/entries/vagueness; R. A. Sorensen (1991). Vagueness within the language of thought. The philosophical quarterly, 41(165), 389-413. 111 F. H. van Eemeren, R. Grootendorst & F. S. Henkemans (2002). Argumenta- tion - Analysis, evaluation, presentation. Mahwah, London: Lawrence Erlbaum associates, p. xi, p. 86. 112 F. H. van Eemeren & R. Grootendorst (2004). A systematic theory of argumentation - The pragma-dialectical approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 1. 113 R.M. Hare (1952). The language of morals. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 114 Ibid. 115 Searle (2001). Rationality, p. 230. 116 D. McQuail (2001). With more hindsight: Conceptual problems and some ways forward for media use research. Communications, 26(4), 342. 117 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. xviii. 118 M. R. Levy & S. Windahl (1984). Audience activity and gratifications. A conceptual clarification and exploration. Communication research, 11(1), 51-78, 110. 119 Palmgreen, Wenner, & Rosengren (1985). Uses and Gratifications Research, p. 109; “Uses and gratification researchers have long been opposed to the old ‘hypodermic needle’ concept of a passive media audience absorbing uncriti- cally and unconditionally the symbolic output of all powerful media.” (p. 23). 120 Studies we conducted at five regional newspapers in the Netherlands and one newspaper in Belgium. (the HCD media groep, Het Parool and Het Nieuwsblad). 121 Those figures found at the studies we conducted for the HDC media groep are lower than what Bogart found in L. Bogart (1989). Press and public: Who reads

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Pierce (1964). Durkheim and functionalism. In K. H. Wolff (Ed.), Essays on sociology & Philosophy (pp. 154-170). New York: Harper Torchbooks. pp. 167- 168. 150 Function. (2007, Dec. 6) Retrieved from Encyclopædia Britannica Online. http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9035654. 151 Rex (1961). Key problems, p. 76. 152 K. Davis (1959). The myth of functional analysis as a special method in sociology and anthropology. American sociological review, 24 (6). p. 771. 153 Searle (1995). The construction. 154 Merton (1968). Social theory. 155 Lasswell (1948). The structure. 156 Ibid., p. 84. 157 Ibid., p. 85. 158 Ibid., p. 86. 159 Berelson (1955). Missing the newspaper. 160 Ibid., p. 41. 161 Ibid., p. 41. 162 Ibid., p. 42. 163 Ibid. 164 This was done in a paper contributed to the fourth world Congress of Sociol- ogy, in September 1959 which was published a year later in Public Opinion Quarterly. Wright elaborated his views in a book, published in 1959: C. R. Wright (1960). Functional analysis and mass communication. Public Opinion Quarterly, 24(4), 605-620., C. R. Wright (1986). Mass communication, a sociological perspective (3rd ed.). New York: Random House. 165 Wright (1960), Functional analysis, p. 607.; Timasheff (1967). Sociological theory, chapter 17. 166 M. M. Willey (1942). The functions of the newspaper. The Annals of the Ameri- can Academy of Political and Social Science, 18, 19. 167 Wright (1960), Functional analysis, 604. 168 Willey (1942), The functions, 610. 169 Ibid., 610. 170 S. E. Martin & D. A. Copeland (2003). The function of newspapers in society - A global perspective. Westport/Londen: Praeger Publishers, p. ix. 171 Ibid., p. 156. 172 J. K. Burgoon & M. Burgoon (1981). The functions of the daily newspaper. Newspaper Research Journal 2 (4), 29-39. 173 Ibid., 29. 174 Ibid., 30. 175 Ibid. 176 Willey (1942), The functions, 19-20. 177 Ibid., 19. 178 L. Lentz & H. Pander Maat (1993). Wat mankeert er aan die tekst? De evaluatie van voorlichtingteksten over subsidieregelingen. Amsterdam: Thesis Publis- hers, p. 1.

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179 R. N. Gaines (1981). Naar een theorie over perlocuties. In F. H. van Eemeren & W. K. B. Koning (Eds.), Studies over taalhandelingen (pp. 191-206). Meppel: Boom; J. R. Searle (1968). Austin on locutionary and illocutionary acts. The Philosophical Review, 77(4), 405-424. 180 J. L. Austin (1962). How to do things with words - The William James Lec- tures delivered in Harvard University. London: Oxford University Press, Amen House. p. 103. 181 L. Lentz & K. Pander Maat (2004). Functional analysis for document design. Technical Communication, 51 (3), p 388. 182 Ibid. 183 H. Pander Maat (1994). Tekstanalyse. Een pragmatische benadering. Gronin- gen: Martinus Nijhoff, p. 205. 184 D. A. Schön (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. New York: Basic Books; D. A. S. C. Argyris (1974). Theory in practice: Increasing professional effectiveness. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 185 Merton (1968), Social theory, p. 105. 186 J. R. Searle (2006a). Social ontology: Some basic principles. Anthropological Theory, 6, 13. 187 Searle (1995). The construction. 188 Ibid., p 13-14. 189 This definition is based on Zijderveld: A. C. Zijderveld(1974). Institutionaliser- ing. Een studie over het methodologisch dilemma der sociale wetenschappen. Meppel: Boom, p. 29. 190 Ibid., p. 29. 191 E. Schein (1985). Organizational culture and leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. 192 Berger & Luckmann (1966). The social construction, p. 53-54. 193 Zijderveld (1974). Institutionalisering. 194 Berger & Luckmann (1966). The social construction, p. 53. 195 B. Schwartz (2004). The Paradox of Choice - Why more is less. New York: Harper Perennial. 196 Berger & Luckmann (1966). The social construction, p. 53. 197 Ibid., p. 39. 198 Ibid., p. 138. 199 Searle (1995). The construction, p. 23. 200 J. Searle (2006b). Searle versus Durkheim and the waves of thought: Reply to Gross. Anthropological Theory, 6, p. 63. 201 E. Durkheim (1967). Les règles de la méthode sociologique - seizième édition. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, p. 28. 202 Ibid., p. 95. 203 E. Durkheim (1913). Pragmatisme et sociologie. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France. 204 N. Gross (2006). Comment on Searle. Anthropological Theory, 6, 45-56. 205 Searle (2006a). Searle versus Durkheim. 206 Ibid., p. 59. 207 Merton (1968). Social theory, p 78.

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208 Ibid., p 105. 209 Radcliffe-Brown (1935). On the concept, 395, 397. 210 Parsons (1951). The social system, p. 22. 211 Elster (1990). Merton’s functionalism. 212 (…) “some of the objects to which we assign agentive functions are naturally occurring such as a stone we use as a paperweight; some are artefacts made specially to perform these functions, such as chairs, is screwdrivers and oil paintings.”: Searle (1995). The construction, p. 20. 213 Searle (1995). The construction, pp. 4-5. 214 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. 118. 215 A billion dollar but failed Philips project. 216 Note that we do not formulate functions, but products we expect to fulfill functions. This is because at this point in the study we lack a terminology to describe functions. 217 Kroes does not make the distinction between man-made products and natural products and therefore he makes no distinction between production and design. 218 W. Houkes & P. E. Vermaas (2002). Design and use as plans: an action- theoretical account. Design Studies, 23(3), 303-320. 219 P. Kroes (2003). Screwdriver philosophy: Searle’s analysis of technical functions Techné: Journal of the society for philosophy and technology, 6(3), 22-35. 220 Ibid., p. 8 e.v. 221 Searle (1995). The construction, p. 54 e.v. 222 Kroes (2003). Screwdriver philosophy, 45. 223 S. Miller (2005). Artefacts and Collective Intentionality. Techné: Journal of the society for philosophy and technology, 9(5), p. 54. 224 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. 118. 225 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. 119. 226 Hofstra (1946) Het functiebegrip, p. 46. 227 P. E. Vermaas & W. Houkes (2003). Ascribing functions to technical artefacts: a challenge to etiological accounts of functions. British society for the Philoso- phy, 54, p. 265. 228 W. Houkes & P. E. Vermaas (2004). Actions versus functions: A plea for an alternative metaphysics of artifacts. The Monist, 87(1). p.56. 229 Merton (1968). Social theory, p. 105. 230 Vermaas & Houkes (2003). Ascribing functions, 265. 231 Notice that Houkes and Vermaas did to not try to define function, but want to know what makes an object an artifact, the want to know what the characteristics bag means all authorities to buy me all his values–are of an artifact. 232 McQuail (2001). With more hindsight, p. 342. 233 N. Kussendrager, D. van de Lugt & B. Rogmans (1997). Basisboek Journal- istiek. Achtergronden, genres, vaardigheden. Groningen: Wolters Noordhoff. 234 Lentz & Pander Maat (1993). Wat mankeert er?, p. 1. 235 Lentz & Pander Maat (2004). Functional analysis, 387-398. 236 R. H. Ernest (1980). The trilogy of mind: Cognition, affection, and conation. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 16(2), 107-117. ; W. McDou-

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gall (2003). An introduction to social psychology (14th ed.). New York: Mineola; R. L. Oliver (1999). Whence consumer loyalty? Journal of Marketing Research, 63(Special Issue), 33-44. 237 McQuail (2001). With More Hindsight, 341-342. 238 Gobé (2001). Emotional branding. 239 McEwen (2005). Married, pp. 127-128. 240 Wood & Neal (2009). The habitual consumer. 241 Lewis (1995). Relation, 25-41. 242 James (1992). Pragmatism, pp. 21-38. 243 Ibid., pp. 24-25. 244 Ibid., p. 25. 245 Berelson (1955). Missing the newspaper. 246 McEwen (2005). Married. 247 Wood & Neal (2009). The habitual consumer. 248 In his dissertation, Bentley measured habit using a scale of three questions. They produced a Cronbach alpha of 0.59 Bentley (2000) when you read the newspaper. Do you usually read it at the same time of day.(1) do you usually read it at the same location(2) do you usually read the pages of the newspaper in a particular order(3). 249 K. Raeymaeckers (2004). Newspaper editors in search of young readers: content and layout strategies to win new readers. Journalism Studies, 5(2), 211-232. 250 McQuail (1997). Audience Analysis.

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Curriculum Vitae

Curriculum Vitae van Leon de Wolff

Leon de Wolff (1948) werkte als 15–jarige als ‘jongste bediende’ op de boekhouding van Aug. Köpcke & Co nv. In 1965 vertrok hij naar Jeruzalem waar hij een opleiding volgde aan een internationale school, Machon Lemadrichiem. Terug in Nederland bezocht hij de HBS, en begon hij in 1970 met een studie sociologie aan de NEH, later de Erasmus Universiteit. In 1976 studeerde hij cum laude af in bedrijfssociologie en bedrijf- skunde bij prof. dr. J.H. Buiter. Tijdens zijn studie werd hij redacteur van NRC-Handelsblad (1972- 1977). Een jaar na zijn afstuderen werd hij redacteur van de Haagse Post (1977-1983) om vervolgens het redacteurschap bij FEM te combineren met organisatieadvies en het schrijven en regisseren van bedrijfsfilms. Van1987 tot 2010 was hij directeur/eigenaar van het advies- en onderzoeksbureau Leon de Wolff Mediamanagement.

Als onderzoeker ontwikkelde hij een eigen onderzoeksmethode die publieksonderzoek combineert met inhoudsanalyse.

In de afgelopen 25 jaar was hij regelmatig gastdocent op universiteit en hogeschool. In 1984 publiceerde hij De Prijs voor Gezondheid, in 2005 De krant was Koning.

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